A Thin Veneer: Kirk Starkiller Dream State
by AlbertG
Summary: Admiral James T. Kirk, nearing the completion of the Minbari war and is standing at the edge of a Knife. But in another universe, there was another Adm Kirk in a similar war. His war turned out differently. We present 'Starkiller', a one shot story.
1. Chapter 1

"**A Thin Veneer: Dream State"**

NOTICE: THIS STORY MAY BE DISTRIBUTED FREE OF CHARGE BUT MUST NOT BE SOLD OR EXCHANGED FOR FINANCIAL RETURN IN ANY FORM

----------------COPYRIGHT/DISCLAIMER NOTICE-----------

"Star Trek", "Star Trek: The Next Generation", "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine", and "Star Trek: Voyager" and "Star trek: Enterprise" and all related Star Trek related material, it's characters and certain technological devices and/or references to such, from the television shows and movies, may be or are registered trademarks of, and may be or are copyrighted by Paramount Studios and whatever Corporation it may or may not be owned by. "Babylon Five", it's characters, certain technological devices and/or references to such, from the television show, past present of near future, may be or are registered trademarks of, Babylon 5, characters, names, and all related indicia are trademarks of Time Warner Entertainment Co., LP. None of the Studios are responsible for the content of this story. Other names and additional characters are the creation of the author who is solely responsible for them as such.

THIS STATEMENT MUST ACCOMPANY THE STORY 'A THIN VENEER: DREAM STATE' IF DISTRIBUTED. THIS STORY IS FREE OF CHARGE AND MAY NOT BE SOLD OR EXCHANGED FOR FINANCIAL RETURN IN ANY FORM. THIS DEDICATION MUST ACCOMPANY ANY DISTRUBUTION OF THIS STORY. I STRONGLY RECOMMEND THAT YOU (AT THE LEAST) READ 'A THIN VENEER', 'A THIN VENEER: SUPPLEMENTS', AND 'THOSE WHO STAND', OTHERWISE YOU MIGHT HAVE A BIT OF TROUBLE FOLLOWING THIS ,EVEN THOUGH IT IS A ONE SHOT STORY AND AN INDEPENDENT OFFSHOOT OF 'A THIN VENEER'

_Introduction: Years ago before ATV was ever thought of, there was another story that featured James T. Kirk unwittingly pitted against the Minbari during the time of the Earth Minbari war of the _Babylon Five_ universe. The creator of the story calls himself Col. Crackpot and he is by all accounts, the __**grandsire**__ of '_A Thin Veneer'_. He began the story '_Kirk Starkiller'_ and it was magnificent. The purpose of the story was to see what Kirk would do in a similar situation as Captain Picard of the '_A Universe of Change'_ series. Needless to say, it caused quite a stir, however most of you have never read what I call the precursor of _ATV_. I asked permission of CC to present his story in _ATV_ and he gave me permission so her it is in _ATV_ format. The original story has been modified a bit so you would consider this an AU of his story. Everything is essentially the same as his original story with a few twists added which blends it fully to _ATV_._

_Please enjoy as we give you this special presentation: _

_A Thin Veneer – Kirk Starkiller 'Dream state' by Col. Crackpot and Albert Green Jr._

"_**A Thin Veneer: Dream state"**_

_**(suggest that you See Chapter 67 ATV for references)**_

_**USS Enterprise:**_

_**Two point four light- years from Minbar **_

"…Yes, Sir," Lieutenant Valeris answered. "We achieved a victory. And we have survived. I acknowledge that I continue to exist and function sufficiently to perform my duty without impedance."

"Do you feel 'anything' concerning the loses the enemy has incurred?" asked Admiral James T. Kirk.

"I am Vulcan, Sir." To her that answer was all that was needed for the Admiral to understand. But he wasn't letting go that easily.

"So which is better, too much emotion or not enough?"

"I can't quantify such an answer, Admiral. As I have little access to my emotions, it is not logical for me to dwell on such abstract thoughts."

"Is that because of a desire not to?"

"No, Sir," she answered. "It is because I choose not to."

"Well, choice doesn't matter. One day I expect an answer to my question. Consider it an order, Lieutenant."

"Yes, Sir," she answered at once, not sure at what he was trying to get her to understand. Kirk smiled at the consternation hiding under her unemotional façade. He had spent too long around Vulcans to be fooled by her declaration of non-emotion. His emotions ranged between amusement at his Lieutenants predicament and profound sadness of the loss of life as he stood up and walked towards the turbolift. He had a report to put together for Starfleet Command. These Ashen were going to be a problem.

"Commander Harriman, you have the conn."

The commander nodded.

The turbolift door closed as he headed for medical. Several members of the crew had been hurt and although he had received their status, wanted to see them for himself. He was the Admiral of the Fleet but that didn't stop him from being the captain of the _Enterprise_ and right now his people need to see their 'Captain'.

Two hours later and a trip to engineering, he was back in McCoy's office relaxing for a moment. Doctor McCoy had opened a small cabinet and was in the process of pulling out a small brown bottle.

"What you need now is some good Kentucky bourbon," McCoy told him as he found two glasses which he placed on the desk. "We were lucky today, Jim. A few broken bones, no radiation poisoning." Frustrated, he took his glass and downed the liquid in two gulps. "They know they're out-classed. Hell, we've wiped out most of their fleet. Why can't they surrender! All of this needless death and destruction. Don't they know what's coming? There has to be a better way. My God! I thought these people were supposed to be civilized. They're just as bad as the Klingons."

"Bones…"

"I know, I know. I just hope that one day we can come up with a better solution than killing each other."

"We're still only half-civilized according to the Metrons." That comment spoken to him so long ago still made him smile, giving him hope for Humanity even after all of these years.

"I hate to dash that little hope, but remember that the Metrons were going to destroy all of us and the _Enterprise_ if you lost that fight with the Gorn commander. That was their idea of putting an end to the whole mess."

"I guess they need a bit more civilizing , too," he chuckled. Then he turned somber. "I cheated death that day, found a way to win despite the odds," Kirk said. "I won that day. Was it worth it?"

"Well, we didn't go to war with them and now the relations between the two of us are better than ever. That has to account for something."

"You're right, but I wonder how this war will change the galaxy at large. Right now, we're allies with the Klingons. How long will that last?"

"Ah, I see," he said nodding. You're worried about the Vorlon Empire. Truth is, I've been worried about them myself."

"We don't know why they pulled out. All the signs were there. They were going to enter the war and then they pulled back." He paused and took a sip. The bourbon burned as it went down. "If they decide to enter the war at the last minute on the side of the Minbari, then we will lose this war because frankly, I don't think we'll be able to stop them."

"But if they were going to enter the war, then they would have some time ago, wouldn't they? Makes no sense to wait. Maybe they decided that war isn't in their best interests."

"Something backed them off," Kirk concluded. " I think they are afraid of something. And I think that I know why."

"Not us, certainly. Their ships are far more advance. They'd run over us."

"Then, why don't they?" he took another sip. "Bones," he said changing the subject. "I received a data burst from the Alpha quadrant. Apparently we're not the only one using it?"

"Who…?"

"Another Federation of Planets ship was there apparently from the future. There was an advanced Klingon warship traveling with it. They established communications with the___Concordat_. From the reports the other Federation vessel made that ship look primitive in comparison. It called itself the USS _Voyager_. There was a wealth of information passed along by an Admiral Janeway."

"Don't we have laws about recording and transmitting with different timelines?" he yelled out. Such a violation was surprising to say the least. "If I remember correctly, Starfleet frowns on such things," he said smirking, "probably because of us."__

"That's not all," Kirk continued, ignoring his friend's outburst even while acknowledging the truth of it. "There was a Minbari warship with them, _Blood of Saints_. That's the same name as the one Sulu destroyed months ago." McCoy blew a long whistle. "_Voyager_ sent us a warning. Essentially it came down to 'beware of the Vorlons'. Bones, the technology on that ship that they passed on to us… The Admiral said we'd need it for what was coming. That action in itself frightens me."

McCoy stood up and looked out of the small view port at the stars. He could see the _Lincoln_ nearby. He came back and poured himself another. "That's why you're expecting a war with them sooner or later."

Kirk took a sip. He never answered directly but his eyes told McCoy everything he needed to know.

***


	2. Chapter 2

note: This is chapter two of the story. Please read chapter one as things have been changed and is no longer a preview. Thanks, AG.

_**Organia:**_

The medieval-looking castle stood on top of the hill of Armidisne as it had always been for as long as anyone could remember. It was weathered, aged, and bore an uncanny resemblance to the old Terran castles built around the fifteenth century. It had absolutely no modern conveniences, not even basic electrical lighting to illuminate the place other than the huge fireplace located in the central all.

Most visitors from other worlds would have found the castle primitive by even their own historical standards, but if they had looked closer they would have discovered truths that would have chilled their souls. For example, no one had noticed that the wood burning in the fireplace was the same wood that had been burning for the last thousand years. Archeologists and visitors from the Federation and the Klingon Empire had noted that the small numbers of inhabitants had lived the same way for as long as they could remember. They had not developed any new inventions, hadn't a clue about electricity, in fact hadn't progressed beyond agricultural level two on the tech scale in the last ten thousand years. and more importantly, they had no interests in changing.

A war was nearly fought over this world. The Federation had tried to protect it and its people from the Klingons. The Klingons wanted to use it as a stepping stone which would push the Federation to war. Both sides wanted it, but fate had chosen another direction for both governments.

The Federation and Klingon Empire had no intention of stopping a war, one long predicted, no matter the cost in billions of lives. Mutual fear, hatred and the desire for conquest was the motivation for a war. Neither side intended to stop.

Therefore the Organians decided to stop it for them. The primitive-looking Humanoids that inhabited the face of the planet were nothing of the kind. They were beings of energy that had advanced past their need for physical bodies and by their power they simply said, "stop."

Federation and Klingon warships on both sides throughout the galaxy ceased to function. The crews couldn't touch their instruments or each other without being burned. The leadership of the Federation and the Empire were informed by the leader of the Organians, all at the same time throughout their territories that all hostilities were to cease and that this war would not take place. Both sides fumed but had little choice in the matter. Although there were a few instances of skirmishes recorded between ships, the forced treaty held sway for twenty years.

From that time there had been few visitors from either side to the planet Organia. That however didn't change the fact that the planet was one of two places where the Collaboration of Elder Races of the Alpha quadrant chose to meet.

Four representatives were there physically; the Organians, the Metrons, the Medusans and the Melkotians. The others attended this most important of meetings by using their various evolved abilities and more traditional technologies as no one wanted to miss this.

"We were too late," announced the golden-haired Metron ambassador. The tall male looked barely twenty years old unless you looked at his eyes. His body had a golden aura surrounding it and he was clothed in a simple but elegant white diamond-encrusted robe. "We should have acted earlier, breaking the circle before the breach became untenable. Our investigations have uncovered twelve major dimensional infringements between universes. You are all aware of the rifts that have already developed. In most universes the weakness in the fabric of time and space now extends into the past and future. The Earth-Minbari war is located at the center point of spatial ruptures that extend forwards and backwards from that point twenty years. The Vorlons need to be stopped before more rifts develop and other universes were drawn in to the circle."

"The Vorlons alone are not responsible for all of this," the Organian representative whose name was Ayelborne countered. In contrast to the young-looking Metron, the entity had taken on the look of an older male in his late fifties. His tapered beard will speckled with gray streaks and his eyes held the promise of vast wisdom. "The results of the temporal cold war being waged is also a major factor. The Organians united, can't maintain the treaty we have enforced because of the damages done. If the Federation and Klingons went to war, we could not stop them. We can only merely prevent an immediate catastrophe."

"I propose that we combine our resources and close the rifts between these universes and prevent further occurrences," a second Metron representative said.

"It is not our responsibility to undo what has already been done," The Organian responded. "We may agree to prevent future ruptures; however the Preservers are now actively involved. They have allowed the Federation Humans and their allies limited access through their transit ways. There is a Federation ship of this time, the _Bozman_ that is being sent elsewhere to another universe. We detected another Federation ship from yet another universe traveling though it and more importantly the two vessels each from different universes were allowed to communicate with one of the Federation ships of this universe. In our experience, we can't recall this ever happening. This active involvement of the Preservers and the limitations placed upon a certain member of the continuum which he is honoring I might add, underscores the seriousness of the situation we find ourselves in. The Vorlon High Council are not allowed to use the transitway however they will seek vengeance. That is a fact we have foreseen. When this happens, the Organians will not directly interfere if they attack the younger races. Violence is an anathema to us. We can not tolerate violence and the emotions that accompany them. We will not interfere if the Vorlons attack the Federation and the others allied in their cause. We are not the Metrons. We do not kill to preserve the peace."

"Yes," the blond-haired Metron countered. "We are willing to aggressively confront the Vorlons and their allies if necessary. Our society understands that sometimes violence is a necessity to protect and preserve civilization and it is because of that understanding we did not follow your example of shedding and casting away what you consider our darker, perhaps even evil nature. That darkness makes us complete, makes us aware of where we are and how far we have to go. It reminds us that we are not God.""

"Our differences in our approaches towards our futures are a discussion for another time. This is the time to discuss how we will prevent war."

The next member to speak bore no resemblance to any Humanoid species. It was surrounded by a clinging mist. Its dark green head was huge almost mushroom-shaped and in the center of its head were two huge glowing eyes that dominated the entire body. A small neck connected the thin looking body, giving the alien a vaguely plant-like impression.

"We agree that the Vorlon High Council will go to war when they judge it time to re-establish their circle," the Melkotian ambassador said. "But they can not be allowed to continue their ways. They will destroy the younger races and they will not stop until 'order' is achieved. Collation of Elders, remember what happened to us when the gate was opened and the destroyers came. The Vorlons used us in their war to contain the Sinhindrea monsters. Our race was almost extinguished. No, we will not kill, but the Vorlons will not enslave and destroy our race ever again. It was a mistake we allowed, one of so many. We will not make that mistake again."

"If necessary, we will force a treaty upon them," the Organian called Claymare said. "Perhaps there will be enough time until they develop a peace between themselves."

"You would not be able to enforce the treaty for long," the Medusan announced. "The Vorlons are power and they will find a way to get past your injunctions. They have forgotten much because of their self-imposed limitations to the physical world however they can easily recover much of their ancient technology base. If they choose that course of action, billions will die. The galaxy will be plunged into a dark age and they will come and destroy what's left."

"You understand the price of doing nothing?" the Metron asked. "There are many of us who will not allow the Vorlon conscious a foothold into our territories. If the elder races go to war, then possibly hundreds of worlds will be destroyed. I have no wish to repeat the calamity that the galaxy experienced in the last great war."

"Then what do you propose?"

"Knowledge is power," the golden-haired ancient said. "I propose to battle the Vorlons using knowledge. However I will need your skills, Melkotian."

"For what the Vorlons have done to my kind...what is it that you wish?"

"In many of the universes we have been observing, the Vorlons and Shadows destroyed countless numbers of the younger races and their worlds in their quests to prove an ephemeral argument. Both sides rejected their assigned duties and destroyed those they were charged to protect, an action that freed them of their responsibilities. In only five universes has this action not been observed. In those universes the Vorlons and Shadows were convinced to leave, not by force of arms but by reason. However, those universes are in the small minority and what happened there must not happen here. There are a few individuals of the younger races that can be made to understand that this small conflict they are engaged in is but part of a much bigger picture. The war between the Minbari and Humans was unavoidable, a catalyst that would create the future not only in this universe but in many others. The Preservers seeded Humanity in so much of creation for a reason."

"But we are concerned about this reality, not the others," the Medusan announced.

"Yes and we need to show the younger races that this war isn't the only one in which the Minbari attempted genocide and the results of those actions. The Minbari actions are the product of genetic and psychological manipulation. They have to be stopped before their race is destroyed. A fulcrum is already in place and his actions and his alone will decide the fate of the Minbari people in this galaxy. He is a half savage but there is hope for him and his people. But he needs to be shown how things can spiral out of hand and destroy his people, even his world."

"He is dangerous, full of negative emotions. Being around him distresses us."

"But he fought to protect your people, Organian."

"That is irrelevant. We didn't require help and we told him this but he refused to understand until we forced the situation. His intentions, however tainted with violence, were pure and heartfelt so it has been decided that we will not help, but we will not interfere with your plans either."

"Melkotian, we wish to use your skills to pass on a memory from another universe. It will be passed on as a dream to the recipients. Most of it will be forgotten, to be recalled at the proper time, when they come together."

"Where is the memory?"

"Here," the dark haired Metron said as the blond stretched out a glowing hand."

"Some are beyond our reach. I will require assistance."

Both Metrons nodded as did the Organians. The Medusian opened a passageway in his mind…

***

On Centauri Prime the emperor dreamed and his telepathic wife nearly fainted as the dream gifted her with memories of things that never were. She would remember everything.

President Levy fought in her sleep, trying to awaken as the nightmare saturated her brain.

In the Alpha quadrant, two men named Sheridan, the father and the son, became inexplicably tired as they continued their journey to meet with the colonists and EarthForce survivors who initiated first contact with the Federation. Both men fell asleep at the exact same moment.

Commander Jeffery Sinclair traveling on the same vessel fell asleep in his room.

In his hotel room on Earth, G'Kar dreamed of war and death.

There were many others.

-And on the _Enterprise_, the _Lincoln_ and three other ships, they dreamed of a history from another universe.

The beginning.

_**EAS **_**Hyperion**

_**Barnard's Star System January 2248**_

_**  
**_  
Captain Kensuke Mifume sat motionless in his command chair. He sat hoping that the sensor crews of the diminutive station above the Cook III colony were wrong because if they were right, then death was close. His ship, even with his four corvette escorts, wouldn't stand a chance against a single _Sharlin_. The two he was tasked to find would kill them for sure.

"CnC to flight ops, launch Starfuries." Mifume broke the uncomfortable silence knowing that he was ordering those men to their deaths. "Communications, signal the _Volga_ and the _Sacramento_. Order them to fan out. Search pattern Tango-Six. If those boneheaded bastards are this close to Earth I want to hold on long enough to notify command."

With his crew silently complying with his orders, Mifume allowed himself to momentarily drift back to his thoughts. The pain of dead friends beckoned him, betrayed him at a time when he needed to be clear-headed. He tried to ignore those thoughts but the more he tried the more his mind refused his pleas. He fought to get it under control and as he did some other memory one he could not ignore took over – his daughter. His only child, killed in a Minbari raid on the _Altiar_ transfer station six months before, symbolized the end of a bloodline that stretched back millennia. His ancestors had a proud history. The Mifume rode with the shoguns of ancient times, fought the Americans in the Second World War…. and bravely stood against the Dilgar.

There would be no more Mifumes.

"Captain! The _Volga_ reports a possible contact… fifteen hundred kilometers off her port side."

Mifume snapped back to reality courtesy of his sensor chief. "Hold course! If that is a _Sharlin_ I don't want to let it know we see it. Order the _Colorado_ and _Bavaria_ hold point. We don't need any more surprises."

"Second possible contact, I can't be sure but there is something on our six! Five hundred kilometers and closing!

"Fleet, hard about! Full acceleration!"

Complying quickly, the bridge crew struggled against the sudden, strong pull of gravity. The smaller, lighter _Olympus_ class corvettes raced out in front of the formation.

"Co-ordinate with the _Colorado_ and _Bavaria_ and lay down fire on the contact…what the…?" Mifume cut himself short.

On the view screen in front of him he saw what few EA Captain have seen and lived to talk about, a _Sharlin_ class war cruiser bearing down upon him. But something was odd. The _Sharlin_ was breaking off and desperately attempting to avoid a collision with Mifume's two flanking corvettes. It was unsuccessful.

By sheer luck, the _Bavaria_ struck the _Sharlin_, and plowed through its starboard fin, tearing it off. The corvette was sheared in half, exploding almost immediately thereafter. The _Colorado_ struck amidships and exploded.

Whether it was a suicide run or accidental mishap Mifume would never know, but what he did know was that the enemy vessel was out of control and coming directly for his ship.

"Jump engines! Jump engines now!"

Desperate to avoid a collision Mifume ordered the jump to hyperspace. Engines powered up pumping energy into the gate and four seconds later it began the activation sequence, but it was already too late. As the jump gate opened, the battered quantum singularity powering the stricken _Sharlin_ failed – and detonated.

The shockwave overtook the jump point, and collapsed it. The _Hyperion_-classEarth Alliance warship, already committed to the jump was unable to recover. Gravity emanations increased geometrically as the energy of the singularity and the quantum 40 intermixed and began to collapse upon what little was left of the jumpgate. Her crew succumbed to the massive G-forces an instant before her hull failed and the ship was crushed, constricted to the size of a small pebble.

The brilliant flash that marked the death of the _Sharlin,_ its pursuers, and the jumpgate was soon replaced by something else. Swirling and crackling with radiant light a vortex of energy formed. With an appearance not unlike that of a jump point, the odd burst of energy grew, and stabilized. The surviving corvettes and Starfuries were completely cut off. The small gunships were too small to carry jump engines on their own and with no hope of escape, they were doomed. The surviving Minbari capital ship had reoriented themselves and were vectoring directly for them seeking revenge for the loss of their comrades. Seeking any safe harbor from the coming onslaught of the second _Sharlin_ the remaining two corvettes and six Starfuries accelerated toward the curious phenomenon. Without a second thought, the Human-designed vessels plunged into the vortex. Without a second's thought, the _Sharlin_ and its _Nial_ escorts followed.

_**NCC-2543 USS **_**Hathaway**_** – **_

_**Barnard's Star System - April 2284 **_

Captain's log- Supplemental: _The _Hathaway_ is holding station six hundred thousand kilometers core-ward of Barnard's Star. Twenty minutes ago, we witnessed the apparent formation of a stable wormhole whose origin leads to an unknown region of the galaxy. All attempts at gathering information as to the location of the end of the wormhole have so far failed. Contact has been lost with every probe launched and we are now awaiting the arrival of the science vessel USS _Grissom_ and her escort, the _Exeter_. What we have determined is that this unusual anomaly seems to be connected to other, for a lack of a better term, passageways that may lead to different points somewhere in our galaxy which is the reason why we are losing contact with the probes as they are carried out of range of our sensors._

_***_

_  
_  
_"Red Alert! Commander Sauren, report to the bridge!" _

Three minutes ago, the _Reliant_-class Federation starship had detected and begun to track two huge unidentified ships followed by six small manned shuttles that had exited the anomaly. Sensors indicated that they had no structural integrity fields and no gravity generators of any kind. Without those basics the crews should have barely been able to move because of the g-forces. However those same vessels had their engines powered to maximum and showed no signs of attempting to slow down.

Barely thirty seconds after the eight odd shaped vessels emerged from the wormhole, the reason for the desperate moves were made clear. They were running from something. More vessels of a different configuration emerged from the wormhole-like anomaly and immediately fired on the first group of ships. The second capital ship looked to him like a giant blue-green fish. Four of the shuttle-sized craft were destroyed outright. One of the large vessels was obviously crippled and was launching what appeared to be escape pods.

Captain Sean O'Rourke was startled by the sheer vicious nature of the attack that unfolded in front of him. "Lieutenant, analysis of the attacking ships!"

"The largest vessel is unshielded and it's hull and armor are crystalline in nature. The weapons fire is some sort of electro-magnetically charged neutron beam. None of the other vessels appear to be shielded either. But they all have some type of scattering field. Our sensors are compensating. Sir, reading an energy spike…"

Several bright yellow beams sprang from the Minbari war cruiser and struck the damaged corvette, immolating it. The ship was ripped apart, the remaining crew spilled out of it bathed in fire which was quickly snuffed out in the vacuum of space. The attacking ship then maneuvered to engage the remaining capital ship.

"Good God… open all hailing frequencies, and transmit in all languages!" The communications officer nodded. "This is Captain Sean O'Rourke of the Federation Starship _Hathaway_. You are engaging in combat operations in Federation space. Cease all hostile activity or we will be forced to respond." The burly, red haired Capitan turned to his Andorian communications officer, "forward that message to Starfleet Command."

"Message sent."

"Mr. Ishikoff, put us between the two factions and give me maximum shields. Sauren, what the hell were those beams? Could we withstand a hit?"

"They appear to be some type of controlled fusion reaction. Judging by the hull composition of the destroyed ship," the science officer answered. "I believe our shields are of sufficient power to withstand several hits, however I am reading dozens of weapons emplacements similar in nature," the Vulcan deadpanned. 'Sir, the _Grissom_ and _Exeter_ have arrived and are standing by." Pausing for a moment, the Vulcan then continued. "The vessel has launched fifteen small shuttles."

"Receiving a transmission from the largest ship," the Andorian announced. "It is coming through on both audio and visual, but the universal translator is having trouble deciphering the language."

"Very well. On screen."

The visage of a pale humanoid replaced the crowded starscape. A growth of bone crowned it's skull, and it was dressed in black. Before Captain O'Rourke could speak, an annoyed grimace replaced the initial quizzical look on the being's face. It spoke one word in English.

"_Earthers."_

And the transmission was cut.

'Captain, I believe we are being targeted. Sir, energy spike!"

As if on cue, the young Russian at the helm reacted and rolled hard to port. The ship shook violently as a glancing blow from powerful beam weapons struck the port shields. Residual energy burned through and lightly scarred the port, topside nacelle.

Springing forward, fifteen _Windstar_-class _Nial_ fighters launched their own strike; several hits were scored, setting the _Hathaway's_ shields aglow.

"Evasive pattern Pike omicron! Lock phasers on that big bastard and fire!" O'Rourke who was knocked to the deck pulled himself to the side of the tactical station. "Standby forward photons!"

"Photon torpedoes armed and ready."

***

The more massive, and fully refit _Constitution_-class cruiser _Exeter_ threw her weight into the fray. Red beams lanced out from her dorsal and ventral forward phaser arrays. Joined by fire from the _Hathaway_, the _Exeter_ scored direct hits, tearing into the crystalline structure of her enemy. Hull and armor shattered and jets of atmosphere erupted angrily. Several weapon emplacements exploded as the _Sharlin_ shuddered under the heavy fire.

Now wounded, and more than a little surprised, the _Sharlin_ abruptly backed off and launched a blistering attack on the largest of its new targets. Dozens of beams burned through the reinforced shields of the mighty _Constitution_.

***

"_Exeter_ has been hit! Her shields have been breached and she is venting drive plasma from her port nacelle!" The blonde, young ensign at the tactical station yelled out heedless of protocol.

"Hard to port, roll forty-five degrees and bring our bow to bear! Fire torpedoes when ready!"

Four crimson bolts exploded from the _Hathaway's_ launchers. Tracking directly towards their target they were met with intercepting fire form the enemy ship. Two torpedoes were destroyed and the explosions rocked the war cruiser. A third was dodged and exploded to port, shaking the ship violently. The fourth tracked true and struck the massive vessel head on and detonated. Immediately the forward third of the stricken ship disappeared and a ball of expanding flame. Despite the valiant attempts of its crew to control the impending chain reaction, the once mighty vessel succumbed to her wounds in a matter of seconds and exploded in a flash of eye-watering light. Evidently shocked by the crippling of their command ship, the attack shuttles retreated towards the wormhole.

Aboard the _Hathaway_, a startled Captain O'Rourke took his seat. "Let them flee. I want a damage report….and order the transporter crews to co-ordinate a search for survivors with the _Exeter_ and _Grissom_.

_**NCC-1701 USS **_**Enterprise**_**:**_

_**En route to Barnard's Star System **_

Admiral's Log: Supplemental_. By order of Starfleet I have taken command of elements of the Federation core defense fleet. As is Admiral's prerogative, I have chosen the _Enterprise_ to serve as my flagship. Her crew is young and untested, but my faith in her captain is unbreakable._

_The outlook for the coming days is both bleak and breathtaking. Preliminary reports state that the _Hathaway_ has made contact with a civilization of Humans from the other side of the wormhole. More incredible is that they claim to be from the planet Earth and from the year 2248. No record exists of these people, their ships or the strange alien warship that attacked them and the Federation envoy. This has all of the appearances of a Preserver created world._

_This great discovery is sadly overshadowed by the fact that the Federation is now, in a de facto state of war. The unprovoked attack upon the _Hathaway_ and _Exeter_ cannot be ignored. The savagery of this unknown power is further reinforced by their merciless attack on a crippled vessel desperately launching her escape pods._

_For now, our orders are to make official contact with the Human government on the far side of the wormhole, and to attempt to broker a cease-fire for all parties. Furthermore I have ordered a dozen _Ptolemy_ class tugs to reposition fixed_ _defenses from Earth, Mars and Andor around the new wormhole…. Just in case._

_**Barnard's Wormhole:**_

With the arrival of Admiral Kirk's taskforce, the Barnard's star system was now a hive of activity. Twenty-nine starships now held station in a half moon formation around the Barnard wormhole, as it was tentatively named. Additionally, long-range warp tugs now can be seen towing fixed torpedo and phaser platforms into the system. Small shuttles and golden colored work bees buzzed around a construction ship now constructing a small command platform behind the perimeter of starships and weapons emplacements. A single Klingon Bird-of-Prey was situated uncomfortably next to a older _Constitution_ starship, its captain being convinced that this wasn't some sort of military buildup directed against the empire.

At the center of activity sat the most recognized vessel in Starfleet. The USS _Enterprise_ however, looked simply fragile next to the armored alien monstrosity that sat a thousand meters off her starboard bow. That alien monstrosity wore clearly English markings on her hull identifying her as the EAS _Sacramento_. Further disturbing to Federation observers was the fact that her equally disturbed captain identified her vessel as a _corvette_. It was primitive and somewhat fragile. After the battle, the corvette required an hour to slow dow under its own power. To the pilots that was standard operating procedure to keep the ship from tearing itself apart during acceleration.

A small shuttle exited the stern of the _Sacramento_ and eased its way, escorted by the two remaining Starfuries, towards the _Enterprise's_ shuttle bay.

_"_Enterprise_ to _Sacramento_ shuttle,"_ the disembodied voice of Lt. Cmdr Uhura crackled over hailing frequencies. _"Power down your engines and stand by. _Enterprise_ tractor beams will take over your approach."_

"Uhhm..R-Roger that, _Enterprise_. Powering down," the young pilot responded, who then turned to his Captain. "Tractor beam? Ma'am?"

"Beats me, Martinez," the exasperated woman replied. "Whatever it is, it sounds a hell of a lot better than being disintegrated and put back together again!"

Leaning forward against her seat restraints she took in the view. As an officer in the Earth Alliance for twenty years, Li Pham has seen many ships. The ships of the Earth Alliance and those of the Centauri and Narn…even those of the Minbari were rugged and practical. This Federation on the other hand, made the most ungainly looking ships she had ever seen. Well, awkward or not, two of these dinner plates on pontoons had blasted a _Minbari_ war cruiser to atoms!

A sparkle of blue light grabbed the attention of the shuttle crew as the shuttle bay shielding dropped momentarily allowing the shuttle access to the small shuttle bay. The shuttle's landing gear opened, and for the first time members of the Earth Alliance had landed aboard a Federation starship.

"Well, let's go make some friends. God knows we could use some right now."

***

Captain Li Pham and Lieutenant Edgar Martinez stepped off the ramp and into the surprisingly large hangar bay…. still reeling from the presence of gravity. Two massive domed doors swept closed behind them. Looking around the large room a quartet of rectangular shuttles caught Captain Pham's eye. No aerodynamic properties at all. She could only assume that the two pontoon-like protrusions were some sort of propulsion….similar to their larger counterparts on their mother ship. A door opened in front of them.

A group of men, women and what appeared to be at two different alien species strode out. The leader was a man who looked to be in his mid forties, with brown hair, medium height and build. He was the first to break the uneasy silence.

'Good afternoon," he began with a warm smile. "You must be Captain Pham of the _Sacramento_. Allow me to introduce myself. Admiral James T. Kirk of the United Federation of Planets." He gestured to the men standing next to him. "This is Captain Spock of the _Enterprise_, Captain O'Rourke of the _Hathaway_, and Dr. Leonard McCoy Chief Medical Officer of the _Enterprise'_

"It's a pleasure, Captain O'Rourke." Yes, definitely two aliens Li thought to herself as she regarded Spock. "On behalf of my crew, myself and the Earth Alliance…thank you." Her hand shot forward. "We'd have bought the farm if it wasn't for you." Her gesture was met in kind.

"You're quite welcome, although your friends in the flying blue angelfish didn't give us much of a choice. What is their species called again? Mimboli?"

He spoke with an odd accent she couldn't quite place it…wait, now she knew. Boston! She swore he sounded like he was from Boston but she was bad with dialects. For all she knew he could be from someplace like Iowa of the United North America. "Minbari, and sadly they're not the talkative type."

"Indeed," a tall blue skinned, evidently female alien chimed in from behind. 'Perhaps our reception will give them cause to be more talkative in the future."

'We can only hope,' Kirk replied. "Allow me to introduce Captain Talara of the Exeter." The blue alien nodded with a friendly smile. "Well Captain, Lieutenant, if you'll follow me to the conference chambers, we can get down to business."

Kirk let the group out into a hallway. Normally first contact protocols are much more…complicated. However this seemed to be a unique situation. The group entered a turbolift.

"From what I've read of Captain O'Rourke's report, time is of the essence."

"Indeed it is. By the way, these are some impressive ships you have, Admiral. We've never seen a ship of any size go toe to toe with a Minbari war cruiser and come away in one piece. One took out a heavy cruiser and two corvettes on the far side of the wormhole. The sad part is, with the way the war is going for us, that's considered a 'victory.'" There was a bitter sadness in her voice. "We don't have many heavy cruisers left. Not that it matters much anymore. EarthGov thinks it's a just a matter of weeks before the defenses around Earth fall. Then we're all dead.'

"Dead?" the doctor fellow broke in. "Surely you don't mean everyone?"

"Actually I do, Doctor." The turbo lift stopped and the group stepped out. "If what the Minbari did to the Antares colony is any indication."

"What happened at Antares?" McCoy pressed the issue.

"The Minbari sterilized the planet. Hundreds of thousands were killed…along with every living thing on the planet." Captain Pham's eyes welled up with tears as a wave of emotion came over her. "I'm sorry. I'm… I'm not being professional."

"Professional? Good God, were talking about genocide here! Professional courtesy can fall by the wayside as far as I'm concerned." McCoy was livid now "Don't worry, the Federation won't stand idly by while Earth is bombed back into the stone age….regardless of what dimension it's in!"

"Doctor McCoy," Spock interrupted sternly. "I don't believe it is appropriate or logical for you to…"

"Damn it, Spock! Human beings are being slaughtered on our doorstep, and you're lecturing me about logic and diplomacy?" McCoy stopped in the hallway in front of the group. "What do you think is going to happen when they run out of Humans to kill in their own galaxy? They're not going to invite us over for coffee and donuts, that's for sure."

"Well, if that is the case we have much to do," Kirk spoke solemnly. "As reluctant as the Federation is to fight a war in its backyard, genocide is not something we take likely."

The group entered the conference room and the door slid shut behind them. Idly Kirk wondered what was it that caused so many races to want to exterminate Humanity? He was starting to lose count…the Xindii, the Romulans (well, he understood the reasoning there) and now these Minbari. The galaxy was a dark place indeed.

***

"Bridge to Admiral Kirk. I have Starfleet Command on a secure channel. It's Admiral Cartwright, Sir."

The voice of Commander Uhura had interrupted Kirk's attempt at a peaceful breakfast. "Thank you, Commander. I'll take it in my quarters."

Setting his coffee down on the table Kirk flipped on the screen in front of him. It was briefly filled with the blue and white emblem of the Federation, and then the dark, lean face of Admiral Cartwright stared back at him.

_"Jim! Good morning. Sorry to interrupt your breakfast, but I have some new orders for you. It's something Starfleet feels suits you to a 'T'._

"Well old friend, you've piqued my curiosity." Kirk took a sip of his coffee.

"Do tell. Orders are to take the _Enterprise_ through the wormhole. Bring whatever escort you feel necessary. We need you to contact the Earth government there. The ship, the _Sacramento_, should stay behind. I don't know what manner of propulsion they use but from what I understand we are unable to properly escort them. Her captain can travel aboard the _Enterprise_." Cartwright then turned serious. "I'm also dispatching the _Hathaway_ and the science ship USS _Oberth_ through the wormhole on a covert mission to investigate these claims of genocide. I've given the co-ordinates of the Antares colony to captains O'Rourke and T'val."

"Starfleet is taking this seriously after all," Kirk opined. "I'll transfer command of the task force to Captain Talara of the _Exeter_. She is the senior captain and the repairs on the _Exeter_ are nearly complete.'

_"Very well, Jim. Godspeed, Cartwright out." _

Cartwright's image blinked out. Kirk touched another panel and summoned the bridge. "Kirk to bridge."

"Spock here, Admiral," came the reply.

"Spock, have Commander Uhura open a channel to the _Hathaway_ and _Oberth_. I need to speak with their captains. I also need you to arrange for an escort. Signal the _Reliant_, _Saratoga_ and the _Yeltsin_… inform them that we will be entering the wormhole."

_**Minbari War Cruiser Valen's Fury **_

_**Bernard's Star System **_

Shai Alyt Dalek was furious. The two ships he had dispatched as a scouting party have been lost - lost to a taskforce of Humans. Indeed they must be taught a lesson. The honor of the warrior caste demanded it. His entire command of twelve _Sharlins_ would be instruments of his lesson.

"Sir, our fleet is deployed around the Earther colony…. and we have found something of interest," the Captain of the _Valen's Fury_ reported to him as the three-dimensional tactical display unfolded before him. "We have located a debris field…here. Analysis indicates that is was the _Brilliant Nova_. There are also the remains of at least three Earther vessels."

"Only three? And what is this here?" Dalek pointed towards the wormhole. "It looks like an open jump point, but there is no jump gate or ship."

"We are not sure. We do believe that it is the source of the mysterious Earther ships that destroyed the _Honored Blade,_" the Alyt reported with unease.

"The _Honored Blade_ is still unaccounted for. Now what exactly led you to that…what, what is that?"

The tactical display zoomed toward the anomaly as it blossomed into a bright swirling rainbow of light. From the swirling light sprung six small vessels. Two immediately broke off from the group and disappeared abruptly. The remaining four turned gracefully and accelerated towards the Earther colony –

– Towards their position.

"Well, it would seem your hypothesis has proved correct," Dalek spoke with a sneer. "Dispatch the first wing to intercept. The colony can wait. We will deal with these new Earther ships first. Captain, I want one of those vessels intact."

The younger Alyt bowed to his superior and disappeared from sight.

_**Earth Alliance Space Near Cooke III Colony**_

"Curious," Spock uttered as he studied the sensor readings before him.

"Would you care to elaborate on that, Mister Spock?" Kirk turned towards his friend manning the science station.

"After we entered the system I detected a large gravimetric disturbance close to the third planet in the system. After our fleet split up that disturbance separated and is now moving toward us. I'm intensifying the scan sir….fascinating." Spock lifted his head from the sensor display. "Admiral, there are twelve separate phenomena. I'm also detecting a solid structure at the center of each disturbance. They are accelerating."

"Natural spatial phenomena don't turn and accelerate in unison. Red Alert, slanted arrow formation and stand by evasive pattern Decker Gamma." Kirk leaned forward as the bridge lighting turned to a foreboding red. "Commander Uhura, open all hailing frequencies."

"Admiral, these vessels are clearly identical to the vessel engaged by the Exeter and Hathaway." Spock added.

"Hailing frequencies open, sir."

"Attention Minbari vessels. This is Admiral James T. Kirk of the United Federation of Planets. We are on a diplomatic mission to the Planet Earth. Our motives are peaceful, but we reserve the right to defend ourselves. Further encroachment may be interpreted as an act of aggression. Please respond."

"No response, sir," Uhura spoke as she re-transmitted the message in thousands of known languages. "I'll keep trying."

Aboard the _Valen's Fury_ the mood was one of bewilderment- and anger. Dalek studied the sensor reports until the suddenly became jammed.

"Captain Luran, what is wrong with the sensors? I'm no longer receiving tactical data on the Earther vessels."

"The sensors are fully functional. It seems we are being jammed somehow," Captain Luran replied. "We are attempting to compensate."

"Jammed? That's impossible! Earther ships have never demonstrated an ability to interfere with our sensors before" Dalek took a step back to regard these newcomers. "That was clearly an Earther script written across their hull. I saw it myself before the jamming begun."

"Sir, we are being hailed. Shall I play the message?

"Indeed Captain. Play the message." Dalek listen to the insolent pleas of the Earther and was unmoved. "Diplomatic mission, I'm sure. These Earthers are as slippery as the Centauri sometimes. Attack when ready."

"Still no response, Admiral. Shall I continue?" Uhura asked.

"Negative Commander. Mister Chekov, prepare a warning shot, a single torpedo. Set it to detonate midway between our two formations."

"Torpedo ready, Admiral," Chekov sat motionless at the tactical station.

"Fire."

***

Dalek was taken aback by the multi-megaton explosion that lit up his tactical display. Never before have the Earthers been able to mount such a large warhead on such a high velocity projectile. This was indeed disturbing. The force of the blast was even greater than the ones used by Sheridan to destroy the _Black Star_, and those were just gravity bombs.

"Luran, send the first wing into attack formation. Use a wide dispersion pattern and ready interceptor fire to deal with those warheads. Move our group in for long range fire support against the right front quarter. Commence attack run now."

_**Earth Alliance Space Cooke III Colony**_

_  
_  
"Sir, the first wave of the main invasion fleet is arriving at the staging area in hyperspace. They are asking for a report on our current situation," Luran reported to his superior.

"Inform them we are dealing with a minor setback. They may exit hyperspace at their leisure." Dalek's focus returned to the display before him.

***

"Bridge to engineering, Scotty stand by for emergency warp maneuvers. I'm going to need every last drop of power you can give me." Kirk's mind raced now. "Uhura, open multiple tight beam channels to the fleet. All vessels stand by for evasive pattern Archer Tango Six on my mark."

"Reading multiple energy spikes on all closing vessels,"

Before Spock's words could leave his lips-

"ALL SHIPS ENGAGE… NOW!!!" roared Kirk.

As dozens of pulsing yellow beams raced at near-luminal velocity towards them, the four Federation vessels flickered, elongated and vanished from the Minbari scanners. Less than a second later they re-appeared, behind Dalek's supporting _Sharlins_. After rotating one hundred eighty degrees, impulse drives glowed a brilliant red throwing the ships forward.

Realizing that his task force would have been crippled, or worse, by the Minbari strike, Kirk quickly ordered his group into an elevated Z formation. Phaser fire sprung forward at once striking three unsuspecting _Sharlins_ from behind. One was sent spinning violently off course, dead in space. A second salvo from the _Enterprise_ struck one of the wounded _Sharlin's_ gravitic drive fins rendering it immobile. The trio of _Miranda's_ combined their fire hitting a previously undamaged _Sharlin_ rupturing the hull in over a dozen places.

***

"Evasive maneuvers and give me a damage report!" Dalek pulled himself up from the floor. His head was spinning, and bleeding.

"Multiple hull breaches, sir. The reactor is also unstable and power output is unstable. Two other ships have been crippled, and the _Jewel of Minbar_ is reporting moderate damage," Luran spoke, nursing a badly broken arm. "They can see us. They can see us and hit us with near perfect accuracy."

"Indeed! Order the fleet to shut down their cloaks and divert that power to weapons." Dalek watched his display as the incredibly nimble ships overtook their positions. Fewer hits were scored, as the Minbari vessels were able to maneuver. Still, enough damage was done to send the _Shimmering Pulsar _to her death. Blinding white light filled the display. "Ships fire at will. Maximize volume of fire."

The six _Sharlins_ of the attack wing now waded back into the fray and began to saturate the Federation position with yellow death. The _Yeltsin_ suffered several hits and rolled hard to her starboard before vanishing only to reappear on Minbari sensors ten thousand kilometers away less than a second later. Before her disappearing act a single torpedo sprung from an aft launcher and detonated against the hull of the would-be attacker. It was torn to shreds.

"Damage report!" Kirk demanded.

"Shields holding at fifty-three percent percent. Minor damage to the shuttle bay doors." Spock soothing calmness was an asset in this situation.

"Captain," Uhura interrupted. "The _Yeltsin_ is reporting heavy damage to her warp drive. They say their main energizer is destroyed and the engineering deck is flooded with radiation."

"Damn. Order her to hold back and lay down long-range torpedo fire. If it gets too hot, have her make a run for the wormhole. Mr. Chekov, how'd we do?"

"We cut them in half, Admiral. One ship destroyed, four crippled and two heavily damaged." Checkov noted with a hint of satisfaction. "The remaining ships are attempting to regroup."

"Still no response to our hails, Admiral." Uhura added matter-of-factly.

"Very well. We'll make another run. Mr. Sulu, attack pattern…"

Kirk was interrupted as Spock nearly leaped from his station. "Warp evasive, any heading!"

Spock's Vulcan calmness was gone, and Sulu complied near instantly.

The _Reliant_ and _Saratoga_ however, were not as quick, and paid a heavy price. Dozens of swirling blue jump points opened directly to their stern and opened fire. The _Saratoga_ was literally sliced to pieces as over twenty heavy yellow beams tore through her hull. _Reliant_ lasted a few seconds longer as her helmsman managed to roll and spin her about fast enough to launch two torpedoes. Each struck its target at point black range, erasing them from existence in a ball of flame. Desperately trying to avoid death she was struck several times. Her torpedo pod was smashed and chucks of hull were burned away from her before she finally collided with one of her pursuers wiping them both from the field of battle.

***

"Dear God, no!" Kirk leapt from his seat. "Uhura tight beam to the _Yeltsin_! Retreat through the wormhole! Sulu get us out of here!!"

After blindly firing a double salvo of torpedoes at the new group of attackers, actually hitting two war cruisers, the _Enterprise_ spun and warped to within a kilometer of the wormhole, breaking the event horizon at full impulse.

An angry and dejected Kirk slumped in his chair. "Uhura transmit the following on the Federation emergency channel..... Condition _Omega_."

**To Be Concluded in the next chapter-'Nightmare scenario'**


	3. Chapter 3

First of all thanks to Ash (Bob Regent of RAAB fame) for his help in adding to this CC's 'Kirk Starkiller'.

There was a question that needed answering concerning the Vorlons and Species 8471. To answer that question: I think that the Vorlons are more energy based and individually more powerful. However Species 8472 has better technology and a a lot heavier firepower than the Vorlons. So I suspect the Vorlons would have the same amount of love as they have for the Third space aliens (Yonji Sinhindrea).

Ed: The Federation dreadnoughts will appear in this story.

**Chapter 3 (of 4)**

**Nightmare Scenario**

_**Starfleet Command San Francisco Earth**_

Bill Cartwright sat in silence as the Admiralty filed into the large, spartan-styled conference room. He knew the loss of two, possibly four starships and their full crews could very well end his career. It was after all his orders that sent them into a trap. Kirk was a media darling as usual. The press was already portraying him as the brilliant commander who saved the _Enterprise_ and _Yeltsin_ from certain death at the hands of a numerically superior foe. Even the Vulcan contingent was satisfied by his restraint.

Now that was a first…. the Vulcans praising Jim Kirk for not shooting at someone. Perhaps he could use this opportunity. Certainly after such a blatant attack even the doves on Vulcan and Betazed would see that the Federation was in dire straits. A more aggressive policy is justified. While Jim Kirk was the perfect figurehead, and more than competent a commander, someone else was needed, someone to work behind the scenes. He needed someone who wouldn't mind getting his hands dirty, perhaps even relish in the task at hand.

Bill Cartwright let a slight smile cross his face. His dear friend Commodore Sheppard and his Panther squad would be the perfect choice. The Commander-in-Charge took his place at the head of the conference table and the briefing began. Cartwright sat back, waiting for his chance to plant the seed.

_**USS **_**Bismarck: **_**Flagship of Panther Squadron **_

_**Location: two light-years from Klingon Neutral Zone **_

Commodore Mark Sheppard sat in his office adjacent to the bridge. His Federation class dreadnaught, the _Bismarck_ was one of the few ships in the fleet to have such an arrangement. The ready room it was called. An addition made after the several in the class saw a refit at the _Archer_ Fleet Yards. The result of the refit was impressive to many and downright scary to others. Sheppard even managed to pull the right strings in San Francisco and had his ship, the former USS _Star_ _League_, renamed.

A full sixteen ships saw a refit. Seven of which carried the black logo of Panther squadron. Gone were the ruby red tipped warp nacelles. In their place were elongated versions of the new Federation advanced nacelle system typical of the _Miranda_ and refit _Constitution_ classes. Twin glowing blue defector arrays accentuated the primary hull and the massive Mark V photon torpedo pods gave her once graceful neck a bloated armored look. Coupled with her new type VI phaser arrays and a shield grid that rivaled those of a small starbase the _Bismarck_ represented the pinnacle of Starfleet weapons technology.

A chime disturbed Commodore Sheppard. Causing him to snap the fragile superstructure of the vintage model naval warship he was affixing to the wall of his office.

He gingerly placed the model on his desk. "What is it Lieutenant?"

"Starfleet Command, Sir. It's a priority one transmission," the nervous, disembodied voice replied.

"Very well. On my screen." Sheppard sat down, straightened his uniform and the Federation symbol on the screen before him vanished, and was replaced by the face of Bill Cartwright. "Bill! You crotchety old prick, I figured it was just a matter of time before I heard from you. Seeing that Jimmy Kirk got his butt kicked on that little adventure you sent him on down the rabbit hole."

_"As usual you have quite the way with words, Mark,"_ Cartwright deadpanned. _"Sorry if I don't share your morbid sense of humor."_

"Nobody's prefect, Bill."  
_  
"If you're finished….. Very well. You and your task group are to immediately report to the Barnard's Star System. We are in need of heavier units to shore up the fleet in the short term, and in the longer term your unique services will be required. Admiral Berger and his group will take your place along the Neutral Zone to keep the Klingons at bay."_

"Berger? That old space hippie?" Sheppard's disgust was overflowing. "Why not just let the Klingons guard the neutral zone for us?"

"For Christ's Sake Sheppard, this is serious! We've even called in the Klingons on this. All projects are on hold and you and you whole group better be at the rendezvous point in thirty-six hours! I'm sending you the Intel now. Cartwright out."

The screen blinked out and was replaced by Cartwright's tactical report and Sheppard's orders for the upcoming mission. At that point Sheppard's eyes widened. "Holy crap... and he thinks _I'm_ freaking crazy?"

_**Space Station **_**Regula One**

_**Mutara Sector**_

"Well, I think we've crammed every bit of data we can into the memory banks," Dr. Carol Marcus announced triumphantly.

"Perhaps next time I'll have to design a larger computer," her son Dr. David Marcus replied with a cheerful chuckle.

The Genesis project was ready for the third and final stage of its development; a live test on an existing dead planet. Well, if Starfleet would get of its collective ass and find a suitable planet, they could. Trouble is the _Reliant_ was supposed to report on the suitability of Ceti Alpha 6 several days ago, and as of yet they have heard nothing. That was fine by David Marcus. His resentment of the Starfleeters was well known.

"Ken, I'm getting concerned." Carol turned from her workstation. "See if you can't get a hold of someone at Starfleet Command on the hyperchannel. I'd like to know what the hell is taking the _Reliant_ so long."

"Carol," the lanky Dr. Ken Nigata replied. "For some reason hyperchannel is off line. It's almost as if we are being jammed somehow. Perhaps increased activity in the nebula. I'm not sure. Wait a minute!"

Dr Marcus perplexed by her colleague's bewilderment stepped over to his station only to see her worst nightmare realized. Seven Federation starships, no warships, of the Dreadnaught class were now bearing down on her station. The swirling gasses of the Mutara nebula trailed behind them like the contrails of centuries-old atmospheric craft. Starfleet has finally come, their intent for Genesis now clear.

A familiar whine filled the room. It was a sound that every Federation citizen recognized. The Genesis torpedo disappeared in a column sparkling light. The computer control console was next. Carol Marcus sat in her chair and began to sob. David Marcus on the other hand fumed, angrily cursing the Starfleet thieves over hailing frequencies. Before he could fully weave his tapestry of obscenity, a lone Klingon _D7-A_ battle cruiser decloaked and silenced the brash young scientist with a hail of torpedo and disrupter fire.

The unarmed station was quickly and methodically reduced to twisted metal and hot gas. As quickly as it had appeared the eighth member of Panther Squadron disappeared and took its place in the battle line. Moments later her companions disappeared as well into the swirling maelstrom of the Mutara nebula.

***

Aboard the bridge of the _Bismarck_, her Andorian Captain turned to his squadron commander . "Was that really necessary, Shep? Bringing the whole squadron out like that? We could have been identified."

"The only ones who identified us, dear Captain Theski, were Carol Marcus and her silly cohorts." Commodore Sheppard sat motionless. "Besides, I owed her a favor. It will appear to all concerned that Klingon raiders destroyed the station. Helmsman, when we clear the nebula set a course for the Barnard's Star system, warp factor seven. Captain, you have the bridge while I investigate the latest addition to our arsenal."

With that, Commodore Mark Sheppard stepped into the turbolift and the bridge crew breathed a collective sigh of relief. All of the members of Panther Squadron were Federation Special Operations, and loyalty was paramount. However, there were often times when their commanding officer just plain scared the crap out of them.

This one of those times.

_**USS**_** Hathaway**_** in Orbit Earth **_

_**Alliance Antares Colony**_

O'Rourke sank back into his command chair stroking his chin. The sensor reports painted a bleak picture of the planet below. Elevated levels hydrocarbons, gamma radiation and the charred remnants of what appeared to be large settlements and military outposts dotted the surface. The planet was clearly bombed from orbit, however the level of destruction was not quite what his counterpart in the Earth Alliance had claimed. _Fog of war?_ he thought to himself, or a deliberate attempt to garner sympathy?

"Where is the largest cluster of human life signs, Sauren?" He remained motionless.

"There are approximately twelve hundred life signs within one kilometer of a large river delta located on the northwestern continent. There are signs of combustion and limited electrical power."

"Very well, I'm taking down an away team. Ensign Calloway, Lieutenant Alvarez you're with me." O'Rourke lethargically rose from his seat. "Sauren have a security detail meet us in transporter room two, and signal T'Val on the _Oberth_, give him our coordinates. He may join us if he wishes to do so."

"Aye, Sir."

_**Refugee Camp Hope twenty-five kilometers**_

_**South of New Melbourne, Antares Colony**_

The sickly yellow sky seemed to add to the misery that was life in the Hope Refugee camp. What began as a small cluster of tents dotting the Wildfish river had grown over the past months into a sprawling tent city. The handful of survivors from New Melbourne were now joined by intrepid and hardy souls who trekked over the gray Eastern hills in search of food and their fellow survivors. With people arriving daily, a dozen new arrivals would normally not attract much attention. These, new arrivals however were wearing clean survival gear, were armed, and seemingly materialized out of thin air, and startled more than a few locals. Shouts and a few nervous screams filled the air.

A group of men armed with pistols and clubs emerged from a large round hut, and cautiously approached the newcomers.

"Who are you?" one nervously demanded, training his pistol. His voice cracked with desperation. "What do you want with us?"

O'Rourke raised his hands and gestured for the Federation security detail to lower their weapons before stepping forward. "My name is Captain Sean O'Rourke of the starship _Hathaway_. I represent a government called the United Federation of Planets. We're here to help."

The squalor of the camp was disgusting. The river served as both a source of water, and a public toilet. Garbage was piled high in the southwestern corner of the camp, and hundreds of makeshift graves dotted the grassland to the north.

"Federation of planets? What's that? You're not Earthforce…." The haggard man's questions seemed almost rhetorical. "Ok… Ok…We need medicine. We have hundreds with radiation sickness… and infections. If you want to help us so much, then bring us some medicine."

"I'll arrange that with my ship. Calloway, inform the _Hathaway_ of the current situation. We'll need medical teams, rations, blankets, building supplies anything we can muster. I'm sure Captain T'Var can do the same." The tall Vulcan nodded to his subordinate and complied with the request.

" Now, mister…"

"Norris. Patrick Norris"

"Mister Norris, are you in charge here, or is there someone else?"

"Ah… yes. The Governor. I'm sure she would want to speak with you." His eyes were aglow now. "Right this way, captain!"

The starship _Oberth_, despite bearing the name of an ancient Earth scientist, was crewed nearly entirely by Vulcans. While she was able to protect herself, she was primarily a science vessel and carried the latest in sensor equipment. The discipline of her predominately Vulcan crew was tremendous. After the initial bustle of activity and the subsequent humanitarian operations, the crew was settled back into their routine. Her captain was on the surface with an away team, as was the captain of the _Hathaway_. Further relief efforts were being coordinated with the local authorities.

Her Science officer, a petite Vulcan woman named Nashara was currently running low level tachyon sweeps of the planets northern polar region. The ecological damage to the planet was indeed quite severe. Emotional beings could be quite irrational. An anomalous reading caught her eye. Tachyon feedback emanating from an unused subspace band was echoing off the planet. She narrowed her scan and elevated the beam to radiate upward fourteen degrees from the planet's pole.

"Commander, I strongly recommend evasive maneuvers. I have a possible subspace contact, correction multiple contacts inbound. They are located in a high subspace domain, and are definitely not a natural phenomenon. ETA, twenty seconds."

"Notify _Hathaway_," the emotionless Vulcan commander took his seat.

An angry vortex erupted and tore apart the calmness of space. Four Minbari cruisers sprung forth and launched a barrage of yellow fire towards the _Oberth_. Fortunately for her and her and her crew, she suffered only a glancing blow on her starboard nacelle.

Red-orange pulses of light struck back, hitting the lead attacker head on. Shuddering momentarily, the stricken war cruiser fired again, and again burning through the weakened shields of the _Oberth_. Her mission pod was torn off aft of the nacelle mounts and she spun wildly out of control.

_Hathaway_ jumped to warp and emerged on the starboard flank of her attackers. A quartet of photons leapt forth, two finding targets and rendering them burning wrecks. Phaser fire lanced out and struck the forth attacker, however she suddenly found herself flanked by five more attackers emerging from hyperspace jump points. Taking several his on her port aft quarter, she sluggishly limped to warp one in a desperate evasion attempt.

The Minbari turned on the crippled _Oberth_ now, but like a wild animal, the Federation starship proved to be most dangerous when mortally wounded. A torpedo spat out of her lone tube and caved in the front of war cruiser, gutting it. That would prove to be the _Oberth's_ final act of service to the Federation as dozens of yellow beams carved through her like a piece of roasted meat.

Aboard the _Hathaway_, her bridge crew sat shocked upon seeing the savage death of their comrades. Time was running short. The Minbari were taking up positions around the planet, and there were over two dozen Starfleet officers trapped there.

"Mister Ishikoff, I understand you developed a reputation for, shall we say unorthodox flying at the academy. Is that correct." The Vulcan asked with a quizzical look.

"Aye, Captain." A broad smile crossed the lanky young man's face.

"Very well. Bridge to transporter room, stand by for rapid transport. Coordinate with the helm." And with that the middle-aged Vulcan swore he could feel a twinge of anxiety in the pit of his stomach.

***

Kirk was restless, and his mind raced as he walked the hallways of the _Enterprise_. The midnight watch always held an eerie calm, and Kirk needed something to put him at ease. The events on the far side of the wormhole had unnerved him greatly. He was now dealing with an enemy that could suddenly materialize in front of him and fade away again without any way for him to follow. If the Minbari were allowed to gain a foothold in Federation space, the consequences would be disastrous.

for locating one's place in hyperspace, just as he walked face first into a pair of Yeomen on a security detail, and managed to get himself knocked to the ground.

"Oh,my! I'm sorry Admiral, I didn't see you there!" The burly young Trill was scared to death at the realization that he had nearly given James T. Kirk a concussion. "Here Sir, let me help."

"No, no Yeoman. It's my fault. I should have been paying attention to where I was going." He took the young man's hand as he rose from the floor. "I should probably get back to my quarters. I've…"

His sentence was interrupted by the sudden jarring blast of the red alert klaxon. Within moments the hallway sprung to life as Kirk rushed to the nearest turbo lift. Mr. Chekov's disembodied voice summoned all senior officers to the bridge, and at that moment the _Enterprise_ shook, hard.

It took a few moments more for the turbo lift to reach its destination, and again the _Enterprise_ shook violently, knocking James Kirk out of the turbo lift and onto the floor. There, his already spinning head suffered yet another blow and his field of vision filled with stars.

"Report, Commander Chekov!"

Anxious voices filled the bridge as he pulled himself up.

"There are hundreds of them, Sir! Capital ships …they are overrunning the weapon satellites and are engaging Starbase _Seventeen_."

"It took a moment for Kirk to process what was going on. "Tactical view, and order a fleet wide evasive!" Kirk leapt to his seat and instinct took over.

On Starbase _Seventeen_, which had just been tractored over from its post guarding the Barnard Shipyards only hours ago, the situation was growing desperate. She was an older station, and while she had seen many refits and upgrades over the years. The shields were simply not designed to hold off the combined fire of hundreds of warships. Fortunately they all seemed to be scoring glancing blows as they charged headlong through the Federation defenses. Had they chose to stay and assault the station, it would be have been destroyed.

"That's twenty-three down Sir, but they're still coming." The young ensign at the science station had horrible plasma burns on his right side, but he manned his post. There was no one else.

"Weapons, overload the damn phasers, take out as many as possible."

Commander Patricia Thomas's face was a bloody mess, although she fared better than her late commanding officer Commodore Smythe. "And where the hell are those photons!?"

"Photon control will be back online in thirty seconds, Sir," another voice… another disfigured officer.

Outside, the swirling maelstrom belched out the last of the Minbari attackers. The Federation defenses were beginning to falter. Half of the defense satellites were gone. Two of the new heavy weapons platforms were burning wrecks and a dozen starships were dead in space. More still fought on holding together despite horrific damage.

The Minbari did not escape unharmed. Thirty _Tinashi_ frigates and twenty _Sharlins_ were blasted to atoms, and more drifted crippled pouring what little energy they had left into their weapons arrays.

The Federation blockade force was caught by surprise, in the middle of the night. Only now had the hundred or so remaining ships begun to form up around the _Enterprise_ and strike back.

"Uhura!" Kirk shouted as he punched away at the computer console in front of him. "Tactical transmission… tight beam to all ships. Stand by to engage the following attack pattern on my mark!"

Acrid smoke filled the bridge. Kirk was readying the fleet for a bold move. If it worked they'd hold on for just a bit longer. Still, he needed some heavier firepower and Commodore Sheppard was still several minutes away.

"Stand by…. Stand by. Mark!"

At Kirk's word, Uhura pressed a single button that immediately beamed a signal to the one hundred and seven combat capable starships remaining in the system. As one they accelerated to warp. Dozens of ships arced outward and the Minbari were treated to a sight that resembled a glowing blue flower for less than a second. As suddenly as they had disappeared the Federation fleet had reappeared in a series of rings surrounding the bulk of the Minbari fleet.

They opened fire.

The Minbari were completely unprepared for a sudden enveloping attack from over a hundred new vectors at once and the fleet withered under sustained fire. Dozens of warships simply blinked out of existence. Fighters that were providing cover failed to even slow phaser beams intended for the heavy ships at the core of the formation.

"_Miranda_ group four, _Constellation_ group three and _Saladin_ groups nine and eleven press attack on grid four section eight! _Exeter_ and _Eagle_ form up with _Saladin_ group four and _Miranda_ group two contain the breakaway group making a run for the shipyards!" Kirk leapt from his seat and ran towards the science station. "Uhura, get me the commander of the wing of Ptolemy tugs holding point around the Starbase… and where the hell are my dreadnaughts!"

"Lt. Commander Albert Greene on screen, Sir!" Uhura chimed in pleasantly.

"Greene, I need you to hold off the Starbase on your own! Do that and I'll personally see to it that you are promoted out of the Logistics Command, got it?

"Aye, Sir." The very young Lt. Commander practically went pale.

"Very good, Kirk out." He paused for a second. "Uhura, order the _Soyuz_ and _Miranda_ group one to form up on our flanks. Mr. Sulu, standby to take us in, we're making a run for that big bastard in the middle."

_**Sharlin Cruiser **_**Brilliant Star**_**: **_

_**Flagship of Star Riders clan**_

Dalek was beside himself. He rocked back and forth slowly as he viewed the display that spread out before him. Many under his command wanted to send more probes through the wormhole before launching the attack. He, of course had dismissed the idea. Whatever lost band of Earthers was on the far side of the wormhole needed to be caught off guard. A probe would have alerted them. Surprise was paramount, and surprise was achieved.

Surprise had achieved next to nothing.

His fleet was being pounded. The small base was reinforced by tiny yet potent ships and was now firming up its defenses. The enemy had presented him with a wall of ships spewing deadly fire and was now launching deep slashing attacks into his formations at will. Despite the best efforts of the Star Riders, their attack had been blunted and the heart of the greatest of the warrior clans was now being cut to pieces. There was one avenue of retreat available…

"Signal all ships to reform at the following co-ordinates." 'A_nd pray to Valen that it is not a trap,' _Dalek added mentally.

"Shai Alyt!" a young subordinate broke his concentration. "Formation of enemy ships breaking through our screening vessels and moving to attack us. The vessel known as _Enterprise_ is leading the attack!"

"Kirk…" That human was responsible for this. True, another had fired the opening shots in this newly expanded war against the mysterious lost Earthers. He has proven himself a most capable foe. The _Brilliant Star_shook violently "All defensive batteries FIRE!"

Beams of yellow death sprung out from the _Brilliant Star's_ main guns and blasted the _Soyuz_ class ship, _Lake Armstrong_ to component atoms. Surging through the fireball was the _Enterprise_, her shields aglow and she was letting loose with all she had. Her most stalwart defender, the _Yeltsin_ was knocked off course and spun wildly out of control. However angry red death had found its way to the intended target as the former flagship of the oldest clan of the warrior caste broke in half and disintegrated into nothing.

"Nice shooting Mister Chekov! And it would seem our friends have taken the path of least resistance." Kirk turned to his old friend. "Spock ETA of Commodore Sheppard?"

"Twenty seconds, Admiral. I am also detecting a second group of ships inbound from Earth at warp four. Five ships led by the _Excelsior_r. Both groups will arrive in unison."

"Very well. Uhura standby to transmit the rally signal." Kirk paused. "Did you say _Excelsior_ is inbound, Spock?"

"Indeed I did, Admiral."

"Well," Kirk shifted his weight in his command chair "This is about to get interesting. Let's see how these barbarians deal with this. Now, Commander Uhura."

_**  
USS **_**Bismarck**_**, Flagship,**_

_**Panther Squadron**_

"Tactical officer, commence warp strafing and standby to drop out of warp."

Sheppard had some special toys prepared for the Minbari. Heavy torpedoes had been stripped of deuterium and filled with double loads of antimatter. The dense crystalline hulls of the unshielded Minbari warships would feed the reaction and effectively nearly double the torpedo yields. The residual antimatter and radiation from the dirty blasts would handle the survivors.

The dreadnaughts cycled their launchers through two full salvos. Fifty-six torpedoes streaked ahead a warp speed toward their targets. Several seconds minutes away. The not quite fully functional starship _Excelsior_ and her four _Belknap_ class escorts fired two salvos of their own. Twenty eight additional torpedoes would add to the maelstrom.

Of the eighty four torpedoes fired, sixty nine found a target. _Sharlin_ and _Tinashi_ class cruisers began to inexplicably explode in violent blasts of light. The expanding balls of gas and debris struck still more ships and fighters. The Minbari fleet was now not only without its commander, but its back was broken. Capital ships and fighters alike were now colliding with strands of stray antimatter. Damaged ships were absorbing antimatter radiation which would spell certain death for all life which resided within.

The torment of the Minbari did not end. The fleet of newcomers dropped out of warp and attacked. Phasers struck deep into crystalline armor. With a renewed vigor Kirk's remaining defensive force and Green's remaining supply force pressed the attack. With all hope at victory dashed, the remaining Minbari broke formation. Eight cruisers made a beeline for the wormhole.

Their numbers were cut in half before they reached their goal. Six more war weary vessels opened jump points and decided to take their chances in Federation space. Three succeeded. An invasion force of over three hundred capital ships was now reduced to seven, scattered and defeated.

Dozens of Minbari fighters and flyers remained. Trapped in Federation space and resigned to their fate many launched suicidal attacks on their captors. Still others merely sat and awaited their inevitable capture.

_**USS Enterprise:**_

"McCoy, status."

"_We lost fifteen, Jim. Things could have been a lot worse. There are lots of plasma burns and radiation exposures. We'll be up there as soon as we can."_

"Thank, Bones. Uhura, send my compliments to Sheppard and the commander of the _Excelsior_ group. Spock?"

"Fifty-three starships destroyed. Seventy-two ships sustained serious damage including the _Yeltsin_. The ships are being towed to Starbase seventeen. We have three thousand two hundred dead. Several combat groups should arrive at Sector Zero-Zero-One in seventy two hours."

"We got caught flat-footed. If they had gotten past us, then they would have gotten a shot at Earth."

"But they didn't, Admiral."

"We got lucky."

"Luck had nothing to do with it."

"Spoken like a true Vulcan…"

"Of course."

***

The Vorlon scout still hadn't been detected just outside of the anomaly. Active sensor sweeps were being deflected but it was only a matter of time before the untamed would notice her. She was still in somewhat of a shock by the outcome of the battle. The Minbari fleet had been utterly defeated by the untamed Humans, something that had not been done by anyone other than the agents of darkness during the height of the war a thousand years ago. With them defeated, the possibilities of disaster edged far closer than it had in a thousand years. The Minbari had failed to contain the threat against the circle and in fact their failure had compounded the problem. Undoubtedly these creatures would come through the anomaly in force and join with the other Humans. The Minbari would be defeated and the circle would be destroyed. There was even a possibility that the other Humans would be seduced into joining with the forces of darkness in the coming war and that would never be tolerated. The scout turned and eased into the anomaly very carefully keeping its profile and stealth systems at maximum. The instrumentation of the untamed humans and their allies was still sensitive enough to detect her if she wasn't careful.

Within an hour the scout exited and immediately jumped into deep layer hyperspace and headed towards the rendezvous point where the Vorlon fleet waited. The Vorlon leadership never believed that the fleet would be needed but they were a methodical race and had prepared just in case things hadn't gone as planned.

Well, they hadn't.

The female slipped into the collective consciousness, merged becoming one with the Vorlon unity and gave her report.

"The Minbari failed to remove the threat."

"Were they able to sufficiently damage the enemy forces to keep them from entering the anomaly and violating our territory?"

"No, they were completely destroyed." The images she sent them was greeted by a collective gasp. "The circle will not continue if we do not act now. The others must not contact these young ones."

"Agreed. We will remove the threat now. Remain where you are. We will come to you."

_**USS Enterprise: **_

"My congratulations on a job well done, Commander Sheppard," said Admiral Kirk. "You helped turned the tide of the battle."

"_Glad to be of service, Admiral. It's my job after all, servicing the Federation." _

The words were civil. The tone wasn't. Putting it mildly Kirk and Sheppard didn't like each other much. Their styles were different and there was a tense undercurrent of hostility between the two stretching back years. The young James T. Kirk should have been drummed out of Starfleet, but instead became somewhat of the golden boy who stepped over a more career-oriented Sheppard into command status. Mistakes were made, Marcus' unsupported charges of attempted sexual assault slowed Sheppard's momentum being pushed back while Kirk's rushed forward. Sheppard was never one to forgive or forget as Carol, her son, and co-workers had discovered. Even if it took years, he was always one to return a favor. _"You made quite a mess – Sir. And that's what Special Operations does, clean messes up. Speaking of which, you can beam all of the Minbari command staff to the_ Bismarck_ at your discretion. I'll get them to the proper facilities for debriefing." _

"Special Operations doesn't have jurisdiction here," Kirk responded forcefully. All pretense of civility between him and Sheppard had disappeared. "All POWs will be processed and I will see to it that they will reach a proper facility. You know the rules."

"_Yes, Sir, Admiral, Sir."_

"Glad we understand each other. Good work, Kirk out." Sometimes it was good to be an Admiral, he mused. Sheppard was a loaded gun. His idea of protecting the Federation clashed with Kirk's.

In the five hours after the battle, two entire squadrons of Klingon warships of thirty ships each had entered weapon's range. There was quiet acknowledgement between both governments that this open doorway needed to be guarded. No one knew what might come through and until it was secured, no one felt safe.

The Andorians had sent three ships, with more on the way. Many ships were days, even weeks away and those gaps were one of the problems that had begun to plague the Federation. Federation space was vast and required more ships to protect the populace. However there was a small, but vocal growing movement violently protesting what they considered the 'militarization' of Starfleet. Already some of the effects of their protests had influenced Starfleet in their ship designs.

"Uhura, have the fleet stand by and not provoke the Klingons. I don't want to start a shooting war with them."

Yes, Sir."

"Kaptain," Chekov said in awe as he glared at the view screen. There are sixty Klingon vessels out there. Orders?"

"I don't know," he confessed. "I've never seen one this close before. And who allowed them permission to enter Federation space in the first place?"

"Admiral, the Klingon General, a General Chang is demanding to speak to you."

"He is, is he? Let's hear what he has to say," Kirk almost hissed. "Put him on."

One the main viewer, a one eyed male Klingon glared at him and for an instant Kirk wasn't sure whether to greet him or activate the shields.

"_Ah, the famous warrior James T. Kirk,"_ the General said_. "Your reputation precedes you. It's a shame that the Organians interfered with our little, shall we say, disagreement?"_ He smiled.

"General, what do you want?"

"_Only to protect our little corner of the galaxy and maybe a prisoner or two, for our mutual benefit, of course."_

"What about a couple of derelicts?" Kirk said derisively.

"_Are you offering?"_

"No."

"_Kirk…"_ There was a small signal and Chang's attention was diverted.

A second later Spock was demanding his attention as communications was cut. "Admiral, sensors are picking up energy emissions from the anomaly. Something is coming through. It's big."

"Minbari?" Spock looked as harsh as Kirk had ever seen him. He said one word.

"No."

"All ships, red alert!"

***

The first indication of the attack was the point that three upgraded _Miranda_ class cruisers exploded closest to the anomaly. Their death throws heralded the arrival of a new unknown enemy as several dozen strange squid-like ships appeared from the mouth of the wormhole-like firing on everything within range. Smaller fighters and scouts poured through the open gateway, picking off already exhausted Federation starship by the handful. Several Klingon warships fared little better as enemy weapons from the Capital ships burned through shields easily. Targets of opportunity were taken and destroyed as they overwhelmed the still unshielded and unwary starships. Surprised at the audacity of the attack in those precious seconds, the allied ships were slow to respond to the attack.

"_Admiral,"_ screamed the Klingon General through communications, _"the game is_ _afoot! We need more re-enforcements."_

"We're the line in the sand, General. He looked at the angry General. "Glory to the one who lives the longest, defeating the enemy!"

The General glared at him with newfound respect_. "To glory!"_

A quartet of Andorian Missile cruisers were vaporized as a full squadron of scouts hammered their hulls, with shields beaten down the ships were unable to stop the attack. Their thick armor ripped apart and their missile stocks detonated. The antimatter warheads immolated the hulls and every crew member aboard the destroyed vessels. More than three dozen fighters streamed past hammering into the barely powered shields of another group of ships, with the tugs and transports both destroyed their crews and passengers wiped out in an instant. With the gateway secured by the masses of Vorlon fighters, larger cruisers and truly massive dreadnaughts began spilling through. The massive two kilometer-long ships dwarfed anything in the Federation or Klingon defense forces. Behind them was another vaguely organic construct even larger than the others, almost thirty kilometers in size, forcing it way out of the anomaly. That ship was flanked by another twenty of the larger Vorlon dreadnaughts.

To every single Federation and Klingon defender, any question about this attack had been erased. This was an invasion pure and simple, the one thing that the Federation most feared and what the Klingons had hoped would never happen. All warriors knew that once an invasion started, they never confined themselves to just one sector. Soon Klingon space would be violated by these – things. Better to get it over with now before it spread.

"_Kirk,"_ roared Chang almost consumed by bloodlust and need to defend the Empire. _"I have called for the Empire. They are coming."_

As the destruction swirled around him and his ships, the Admiral almost welcomed them to what was coming through the anomaly. They'll have their work cut out for them," he answered viciously. The ship rocked from a near miss by one of the smaller ships. Phasers cut into the biofighter and it broke into pieces as it phased out of existence. "Spock, analyze those ships. We need info on the big one!"

"Data coming through, Admiral…"

"How long before our re-enforcements get here!?"

"The sixth fleet will arrive in sixty-eight hours."

***

Pain! Death! Kosh felt it through his mental connections with the others. Anger mixed with intense fear for his life and the lives of the others of his kind. The Vorlons attackers were in shock and the capabilities of the young race's weaponry and technology. They were not like the races at home. These had wild, untamed minds, unconcerned about order and no hint of their place in the scheme of things.

When his people had attacked, getting through enemy shield defenses presented little problems. The young ones died as they were supposed to. Then they began fighting back using energy weapons that ate away at the skins of the bioships. Several surviving ships were screaming in pain as they resisted the enemy beams. They'd survive but they were hurt badly. The Vorlons who had died had been alive since the battle against 'them'. No Vorlon had died in violence since then and for a moment his grief was overwhelming. This intended slaughter was rapidly turning into a real war.

Yes, they were right to come here before the contamination had spread to the protected races. Two ships of these creatures were still violating home but would soon be dealt with. The circle was being threatened even more so than he and the others had believed. Consensus had been correct; the destruction of this Human world and its people was the proper response. This other Earth had been located and targeted for removal. Curse the Preserves and their need to spread identical worlds throughout the galaxy!

When the other Human's world was removed and their people and defenses destroyed, the survivors if any would not dare to re enter the anomaly. According to all information, if the contamination could be contained for the next twenty years, then the circle would be completed and then these untamed pebbles could do what they wanted. Until then they had to be taught a lesson. The Minbari were not strong enough to teach these pebbles, so it fell upon the masters to do so. However the lesson was being resisted. No matter, it would be taught in any case and the immature planet killer would be the instrument of that lesson.

_**USS Bismarck**_

"They're going after Earth!" Sheppard growled under his breath. That was the only reason that made since. "Contact Cartwright and let him know that they're going to hit Earth!"

"What about the _Enterprise_?"

"Whatever else he is, Kirk's no fool. He's already figured it out," Sheppard hissed. "Let's make our mark and head to Sol system."

Panther Squadron, using their superior speed and weapons had hit one of the huge bioships from all sides. The two kilometer-long ship was too powerful to attack from the front but its sides and back were vulnerable. Type VI Federation phasers joined by photon torpedoes chopped the Vorlon assault-ship to pieces without it being able to properly defend itself.

The _Bismark_ and its squadron became the object of attack as several Vorlon ships of various classes took umbrage at the destruction of their brethren. The faster ships were hit in a brutal crossfire. Nine Panthers were destroyed outright. Four more had been reduced to floating wreckage, joining the scores of Federation, allied and Klingon ships dead in space. The Flagship's shields protected it from two glancing strikes before the third beam tore part the starboard nacelle.

"Commodore," yelled Captain Theski. "Causalities were coming in. Half the crew is dead and we're losing containment! Shields are gone."

"Weapons!"

"One phaser bank with one third power and dropping. Sir, she's done for!"

Half the bridge crew was dead but he was remarkably untouched but the way the bridge smelled, that wouldn't last for long. "How long?"

"If they don't attack us, about four minutes."

"We need to send the package. Contact _Enterprise_ now."


	4. Chapter 4

_**.?p=3940714%20#post3940714**_

_**USS Enterprise- Barnard's Star System:**_

"McCoy, status."

"_We lost fifteen, Jim. Things could have been a lot worse. There are lots of plasma burns and radiation exposures. We'll be up there as soon as we can."_

"Thank, Bones. Uhura, send my compliments to Sheppard and the commander of the _Excelsior_ group. Spock?"

"Fifty-three starships destroyed. Seventy-two ships sustained serious damage including the _Yeltsin_. The ships are being towed to Star Base Seventeen. We have three thousand two hundred dead. Several combat groups should arrive at Sector Zero-Zero-One in seventy-two hours."

Kirk was gritting his teeth at the stats. "We got caught flat-footed. If they had gotten past us, then they would have gotten a shot at Earth."

"But they didn't, Admiral."

"We got lucky."

"Luck had nothing to do with it."

The Admiral smiled at the familiar discussion, one that had been repeated over the years among friends. It was reassuring. "Spoken like a true Vulcan…"

"Of course."

***

The Vorlon scout still hadn't been detected just outside of the anomaly. Active sensor sweeps were being deflected but it was only a matter of time before the untamed young ones would notice her. She was still in somewhat of a shock by the outcome of the battle. The Minbari fleet had been utterly defeated by the untamed Humans, something that had not been done by anyone other than the agents of darkness during the height of the war a thousand years ago. With them defeated, the possibilities of disaster edged far closer than it had in a thousand years. The Minbari had failed to contain the threat against the circle and in fact their failure had compounded the problem. Undoubtedly these creatures would come through the anomaly in force and join with the other Humans. The Minbari would be defeated and the circle would be destroyed. There was even a possibility that the other Humans would be seduced into joining with the forces of darkness in the coming war and that would never be tolerated.

The scout turned and eased into the anomaly very carefully keeping its profile and stealth systems at maximum. The instrumentation of the untamed humans and their allies was still sensitive enough to detect her if she wasn't careful. Within an hour the scout exited and immediately jumped into deep layer hyperspace and headed towards the rendezvous point where the Vorlon fleet waited. The Vorlon leadership never believed that the fleet would be needed but they were a methodical race and had prepared just in case things hadn't gone as planned.

Well, they hadn't.

The female slipped into the collective consciousness, merged becoming one with the Vorlon unity and gave her report. "The Minbari failed to remove the threat."

"_Were they able to sufficiently damage the enemy forces enough to keep them from re-entering the anomaly? " _

"No, they were completely destroyed." The images she sent them were greeted by a collective gasp. "The circle will not continue if we do not act now," she continued. "The others must not contact these Free-willed creatures."

"_Agreed. We are unable to close the bridge; therefore we will remove the threat now. Remain where you are. We will come to you."_

_**USS Enterprise:**_

Barnard's Star system, a very low mass red dwarf was approximately six light-years from the sol system and as such was of strategic importance to the heart of the Federation. With the anomaly so close, it was little wonder that the Federation was extremely concerned about the potential of invasion. With the Minbari task force all but slaughtered, the remnants of the defensive force made a logical but critical error. They had hurriedly prepared for another possible attack from the Minbari.

"My congratulations on a job well done, Commander Sheppard," said Admiral Kirk. "You helped turned the tide of the battle."

"Glad to be of service, Admiral. It's my job after all, servicing the Federation."  
The words were civil. The tone wasn't.

Putting it mildly Kirk and Sheppard didn't like each other much. Their styles were different and there was a tense undercurrent of hostility between the two stretching back decades.

According to Sheppard's train of thought, the young James T. Kirk should have been drummed out of Starfleet, but instead became somewhat of the golden boy who stepped over a more career-oriented Sheppard into command status. Mistakes were made, Marcus' unsupported charges of attempted sexual assault slowed Sheppard's momentum, being pushed back while Kirk's rushed forward. Sheppard was never one to forgive or forget as Carol, her son, and co-workers had discovered. Even if it took years, he was always one to return a favor.

"You made quite a mess – Sir. And that's what Special Operations does, clean messes up. Speaking of which, you can beam all of the Minbari command staff to the _Bismarck_ at your discretion. I'll get them to the proper facilities for debriefing."

"Special Operations doesn't have jurisdiction here," Kirk responded forcefully. All pretense of civility between him and Sheppard had disappeared. "All POWs will be processed and I will see to it that they will reach a proper facility. You know the rules."

"Yes, Sir, Admiral, Sir."

"Glad we understand each other. Good work, Kirk out." Sometimes it was good to be an Admiral, he mused. Sheppard was a loaded gun. His idea of protecting the Federation clashed with Kirk's beliefs to his very core.

In the five hours after the battle, two entire squadrons of Klingon warships of thirty ships each had entered weapon's range. There was quiet acknowledgement between both governments that this open doorway needed to be guarded. No one knew what might come through and until it was secured, no one felt safe.

The Andorians had sent three ships, with more on the way. Many ships were days, even weeks away and those gaps were one of the problems that had begun to plague the Federation. Federation space was vast and required more ships to protect the populace. However there was a small, but vocal growing movement violently protesting what they considered the 'militarization' of Starfleet. Already some of the effects of their protests had influenced Starfleet in their ship designs.

"Uhura, have the fleet stand by and not provoke the Klingons. I don't want to start a shooting war with them."

Yes, Sir."

"Kapitain," Chekov said in awe as he glared at the view screen. There are sixty Klingon vessels out there. Orders?"

"I don't know," he confessed as he looked at what could be describe as a fleet of Klingons. "I've never seen one this close before. And who allowed them permission to enter Federation space in the first place?" he muttered.

"Admiral, the Klingon General, a General Chang is demanding to speak to you."

"He is, is he? Let's hear what he has to say," Kirk almost hissed. "Put him on."

One the main viewer, a one eyed male Klingon glared at him and for an instant Kirk wasn't sure whether to greet him or activate the shields.

"Ah, the famous warrior James T. Kirk," the General said. "Your reputation precedes you. It's a shame that the Organians interfered with our little, shall we say, disagreement?" He smiled.

"General, what do you want?"

"Only to protect our little corner of the galaxy and maybe a prisoner or two, for our mutual benefit, of course."

"What about a couple of derelicts?" Kirk said derisively.

"Are you offering?"

"No."

"Kirk…" There was a small signal and Chang's attention was diverted.

A second later Spock was demanding his attention as communications was cut. "Admiral, sensors are picking up energy emissions from the anomaly. Something is coming through. It's big."

"Minbari?" Spock looked as harsh as Kirk had ever seen him.

He answered using one word. "No."

"All ships, red alert!"

***

The first indication of the attack was the point that three upgraded _Miranda_ class cruisers exploded closest to the anomaly. Their death throws heralded the arrival of a new unknown enemy as several dozen strange squid-like ships appeared from the mouth of the wormhole-like firing on everything within range. Smaller fighters and scouts poured through the open gateway, picking off already exhausted Federation starship by the handful. Several Klingon warships fared little better as enemy weapons from the capital ships burned through shields easily. Targets of opportunity were taken and destroyed as they overwhelmed the still unshielded and unwary starships. Surprised at the audacity of the attack in those precious seconds, the allied ships were slow to respond to the attack.

"Admiral," screamed the Klingon General through communications, "the game is afoot! We need more re-enforcements."

"We're the line in the sand, General. He looked at the angry General. "Glory to the one who lives the longest, defeating the enemy!"

The general glared at him with newfound respect. "To glory!"

***

The trio of ill-prepared Andorian missile cruisers were vaporized as a full squadron of Vorlon scouts hammered their hulls. With their powerful energy weapons, with shields beaten down the ships were unable to stop the attack. Their thick armor shredded First One beams and their missile stocks detonated. The antimatter warheads immolated the hulls and every crew member aboard the destroyed vessels. More than three dozen fighters streamed past hammering into the barely powered shields of another group of ships. The tugs and transports were destroyed their crews and passengers wiped out in an instant. With the gateway secured by the masses of Vorlon fighters, larger cruisers and truly massive dreadnoughts began spilling through. The massive two kilometer-long ships dwarfed anything in the Federation or Klingon defense forces. Behind them was another vaguely organic construct even larger than the others, almost twenty kilometers in size, forcing it way out of the anomaly. That ship was flanked by another twenty of the larger Vorlon dreadnaughts.

To every single Federation and Klingon defender, any question about this attack had been erased. This was an invasion pure and simple, the one thing that the Federation most feared and what the Klingons had hoped would never happen. All warriors knew that once an invasion started, they never confined themselves to just one sector. Soon Klingon space would be violated by these – things. Better to get it over with now before it spread. The word was issued. Every Klingon warship in the sector would be headed here to join in this battle.

"Kirk," roared Chang almost consumed by bloodlust and need to defend the Empire. "I have called for the Empire. They are coming."

As the destruction swirled around him and his ships, the Admiral almost welcomed his Klingon adversaries to what was coming through the anomaly. "They'll have their work cut out for them," he answered viciously. The ship rocked from a near miss by one of the smaller ships. Phasers cut into the biofighter and it broke into pieces as it phased out of existence. "Spock, analyze those ships. We need info on the big one!"

"Data coming through, Admiral…"

"How long before our re-enforcements get here!?"

"The sixth fleet will arrive in sixty-eight hours."

***

Pain! Death! Kosh felt it through his mental connections with the others. Anger mixed with intense fear for his life and the lives of the others of his kind. The Vorlons attackers were in shock and the capabilities of the young race's weaponry and technology. They were not like the races at home. These had wild, untamed minds, unconcerned about order and no hint of their place in the scheme of things.

When his people had attacked, getting through enemy shield defenses presented little problems. The young ones died as they were supposed to. Then they began fighting back using energy weapons that ate away at the skins of the bioships. Several surviving ships were screaming in pain as they resisted the enemy beams. They'd survive but they were hurt badly. The Vorlons who had died had been alive since the battle against 'them'. No Vorlon had died in violence since then and for a moment his grief was overwhelming. This intended slaughter was rapidly turning into a real war. It was good that they had come and dealt with this now instead of waiting.

Yes, they were right to come here before the contamination had spread to the protected races. Two ships of these creatures were still violating home but would soon be dealt with. The circle was being threatened even more so than he and the others had thought possible. Consensus had been correct; the destruction of this Human world and its people was the proper response. This other Earth had been located and targeted for removal. Curse the Preserves and their need to spread identical worlds throughout the galaxy!

When the other Human's world was removed and their people and defenses destroyed, the survivors, if any would not dare to re enter the anomaly. According to all information, if the contamination could be contained for the next twenty years, then the circle would be completed and then these untamed pebbles could do what they wanted. Until then they had to be taught the lesson on non-interference. The Minbari were not strong enough to teach these pebbles, so it fell upon the masters to do so. However the lesson was being resisted. No matter, it would be taught in any case and the immature planet killer would be the instrument of that lesson.

_**USS Bismarck**__:_

"They're going after Earth!" Sheppard growled under his breath. That was the only reason that made since. "Contact Cartwright and let him know that they're going to hit Earth!"

"What about the _Enterprise_?"

"Whatever else he is, Kirk's no fool. He's already figured it out," Sheppard hissed. "Let's make our mark and head to Sol system."

Panther squadron, using their superior speed and weapons had hit one of the huge bioships from all sides. The two kilometer-long ship was too powerful to attack from the front but its back and sides were vulnerable. Type VI Federation phasers joined by photon torpedoes chopped the Vorlon assault-ship to pieces without it being able to properly defend itself. More Vorlons died. More screamed vengeance.

The _Bismarck_ and its squadron became the object of attack as several Vorlon ships of various classes took umbrage at the destruction of their brethren. The faster ships were hit in a brutal crossfire. Nine Panthers were destroyed outright. Four more had been reduced to floating wreckage, joining the scores of Federation, allied and Klingon ships dead in space. The flagship's shields protected it from two glancing strikes before the third beam tore part the starboard nacelle.

"Commodore," yelled Captain Theski. "Causalities were coming in. Half the crew is dead and we're losing containment! Shields are gone."

"Weapons!"

"One phaser bank with one third power and dropping. Sir, she's done for!"

Half the bridge crew was dead but he was remarkably untouched but judging from the way the bridge smelled, that wouldn't last for long. "How long?"

"If we're not hit again, about four minutes."

"We need to send the package. Contact _Enterprise_ now."

***

"Fire!" Kirk ordered.

The _Enterprise's_ photon torpedoes fired into the gapping hole of the Vorlon cruiser and exploded creating ruptures in the hull that would doom the ship in short order. Several scout vessels converged on her, trying to destroy _Enterprise_ but the ship was already moving out of the line of fire. She was damage but still capable of combat, unlike dozens of other ships. The Klingons had suffered massive causalities, with more than half their fleet wiped out in the opening minutes of the battle. However the enemy hadn't remained unscathed. Several cruisers and more than a few scouts had been sent to oblivion.

But it wasn't enough. The Vorlon dreadnaught fleet was effectively tearing the defenders apart and without additional support, they couldn't hold the line. Everywhere, Federation and allied ships were being gutted.

_Enterprise_ shook from a near miss from of the bigger cruisers. The _Hathaway_ acted as wingman using whatever energy it had left to support the Admirals vessel.

"Shields at twenty percent."

"They're breaking through," Chekov said. "Some are setting a course towards Earth!"

"Admiral," Uhura said. "Sheppard is trying to contacting us."

The _Enterprise_ was hit by another blast, shields collapsed.

_Oh, that didn't fell good!_ "Scotty, get the shields back up!"

"_It's bad, Admiral,"_ Scotty screamed back. _"I can give you only ten percent in another minute or so!"_

"_Admiral, stand by for emergency transport!"_ Sheppard demanded. On the view screen, the _Enterprise's_ bridge crew could see that his ship was a mess. There were conduits hanging everywhere. Fire could be seen in the background. They were on emergency lighting. Crew member slumped over consoles.

"Sheppard, it's not the time!"

"_Make time! They're going after Earth. We both know it!_ I'm transporting an equalizer," he hissed as his ship was rocked slightly. _"For the future." _There was a momentary look of pure hatred before he terminated the transmission.

"We can not withstand any more of this. Admiral, I recommend that we withdraw now, "Spock said. There was a sense of urgency that couldn't be ignored.

"Stand by to receive a transport! Uhura, open a channel. To all ships, regroup at point U-Eighty-Seven, repeat all ships retreat to U-Eighty-Seven."

On screen the _Bismarck_ was savaged by three more energy beams and was blown into its component atoms.

"…Transport completed."

_We hurt them_ Kirk thought bitterly, b_ut not enough. This is far from over. _"Sulu, go."

The damaged _Enterprise_ and several surviving Federation and Klingon ships warped out of the field of battle, leaving the remaining husks of their comrades littered across they star system.

_**Sol System:**_

"Defense systems are energized!"

The surface of the moon could be seen glowing as the attacks by the Vorlon armada continued their onslaught domed cities were rendered devoid of life. The Vorlon dreadnaughts methodically fired at the population centers killing millions less than ten hours after the attack at Barnard's star. However the Vorlons had paid a price for their victories. Incoming starships continued to harass the Vorlon picket ships. A two kilometer-long dreadnaught was gutted as a salvo of no less than twenty photon torpedoes hammered it to death. But still wasn't enough.

The death of so many Vorlons slammed into the unified collective consciousness, terrifying and enraging the survivors even more, pushing them into even greater acts of atrocities. Vorlon life spans were extremely long and the death of any of them was experienced as a physical blow and each loss increased their already mounting hatred against the young race they were trying to kill. The motivation for the battle now changed from removing a threat to eliminating a foul race that dared to defy the will of the Vorlon Empire. Their pride was now at stake as the conflict had turned into a war. Pebbles would never dictate to Mountains.

Please of surrender had been ignored.

The untamed defenders had established a line against the fleet and were fighting against the will of the Vorlons with everything they had, backed up with their very formidable planetary defenses. Another problem was beginning to develop as intercepted reports indicated that more of the enemy ships were on the way. But they were going to be far too late. Just as they were being re-enforced so were the Vorlons as another twenty dreadnaughts would soon exit the anomaly and quickly head to join the others.

Another hour and the outer defenses were battered into submission and still the pebbles fought. The now positioned twenty kilometer-long planet killer, a small one for its size as it had been grown quickly and was just basically operational, screamed in agony as beams of phased energy and waves of antimatter collided with its skin on a continual basis. However it was all but over. It was beginning to power up slowly but steadily. Waves of enemy ships had broken through more than once and combined with the planetary enemy fire inflicted horrendous the damage to it. The living ships and their Vorlon crews protecting the PK pounded the offending ships into scrap even as more of their own people were killed. The ancient race was getting tired and had not expected such resistance. The living ships needed time to recover and rebuild their strength and too much energy was being expended to stop the young abominations from killing them. But now their objective was almost in range. The huge space station, formidable in its own right had just been destroyed, its remains beginning to tumble into Earth's atmosphere. Several heavy warships had been sacrificed to destroy that station and its surrounding defenses.

At such close range, beams of the phased energy weapons from the orbital defenses savaged the huge Vorlons ships and the living ships were becoming afraid, but they dared not stop. Suddenly there was encouraging news as a second Vorlon fleet transverse the anomaly. News spread instantly and in that moment, the Vorlons drew encouragement along with a renewed sense of purpose. They couldn't be stopped now. The Vorlons hit the remaining defenses and the Earth's defenses collapsed. The small Vorlon planet killer was finally positioned and built up its final charge.

It fired.

Beams of pure, blinding white energy burned through the planetary shields and touched the surface of a now defenseless Earth and everything within fifty kilometers of where the beams touched ceased to exist as it bored deep into the planets crust. Long dormant volcanoes went active. EM pulses destroyed older equipment. Magma from the core slowly began to rise to the surface. Earthquakes began to spread across the globe. And tens of millions died. Billions more were following those who had already passed on.

The second and third shots hit and destroyed most of the iron core ensuring the planet's death. It would take a few days before the planet tore itself apart from the initial damage, but the Vorlons wanted to make a definitive statement to the other young ones so, the other ships continued to fire on the planet, destroying cities, boiling oceans and trying their best to rip continents to shreds.

Their primary purpose achieved, the Vorlons began to withdraw from the ruined and dying world. The second relief fleet was engaging any ships and stragglers trying either to engage or retreat from the area allowing respite for the primary fleet and the damaged planet killer. As the First Ones pulled out of the system they hit Mars once more, several moon of Saturn and Neptune and all other settlements and installations in the system. Vulcan would be next and then the Andorian home world. They had the time and wanted to be thorough, anything necessary to make sure that the untamed pebbles would never ever venture through the anomaly again. The circle would be maintained until it was no longer needed.

_**USS Enterprise: Rally Point U-Eighty-Seven**_

"…_Scott here. That last hit really did us a number. Admiral, we have auxiliary power only. Shields are gone. The main energizers were damaged before we retreated. I don't know how long it'll take before I can get even half power. I may be able to give you warp two for an hour in about five hours."_

"Do what you can, Scotty. Keep me informed, Kirk out."

There was a collective silence on the bridge. Uhura had transmitted the latest communications bursts throughout the ship at Kirk's order. The whole crew had heard what happened to the Sol system. The _Enterprise_ and eight surviving Federation and six Klingon cruisers were all that was left of the original defense fleet and were the only ones that were able to make it out of Barnard's Star system. The Vorlons simply had too many ships and the Federation ships already battered from the Minbari surprise attack, had too few. The surviving eight could do little more than watch as the birthplace of humanity underwent its death throes. The heart of the Federation had just been ripped apart by an unknown and powerful enemy for reasons unknown.

"Jim," Spock said softly pulling him to the side. "McCoy died on the table. There was nothing that could be done."

'_Damn'._

"I grieve with thee. He was my friend as well."

Kirk nodded. "We'll grieve later, right now I need answers. Come with me."

Captain Spock followed the Admiral along with three security guards to the brig. There several Minbari prisoners sat nervously behind the energy shields blocking their escape. Most of them were pilots of _Nials_ and several of the smaller flyers. The admiral, his fury increasing with every step entered the brig. Glaring at the prisoners, he chose the eldest of them and ordered him removed from the cell.

The Minbari casually walked out of the cell almost smiling. Kirk was not amused and was in no mood for idle banter.

"Why did you attack us," he demanded.

The Minbari smiled. "The Earther colony needed to be destroyed. There can be no escape for what your people have done."

"And what was it that we were supposed to have done?"

You killed our leader, the best of us in a cowardly attack. Only your world drowned in blood will appease us," he answered with voice filled with pride. "You thought you could hide from us here, so far from your home world to escape our judgment but you didn't run far enough. No Human colony anywhere in this galaxy will escape our justice."

Spock showed him an image of one of the vessels that attacked Earth and immediately the Minbari gasped in recognition.

"They came," he whispered as if he couldn't believe it.

Spock's eyes narrowed. "Who are 'they'?"

The Minbari POW didn't even try to resist the interrogation. "They are your deaths," he answered. "They are called the Vorlons, a race millions of years old, and ally to the Minbari. They saw our need. You hurt us and they came to our aid. Nothing will be the same again."

"So, let me understand you," stated Kirk. "These Vorlons are going to kill billions of people to aid you in a vendetta because one of your people was killed by Humans?"

The Minbari had a gleam in his eyes. He cocked his head. "No surrender, no retreat from justice. As with your world, your days are numbered."

"No," Kirk told him. His voice was cold. "It's just beginning."

To be concluded


	5. Chapter 5

_**Chapter Five**_

_**Present time:**_

_**The Solar Le Clément hotel:**_

_**Paris: Earth**_

The Narn known as G'Kar twisted violently in his bed struggling violently to awaken from the nightmare he was experiencing. The Earth Federation people had been destroyed by an ancient power, the Vorlons. He had heard of those elusive aliens but had never seen a living Vorlon or any of their ships. In his dreams however, he saw them clearly; saw those Minbari being wiped out easily enough to make him feel a stab of envy at the power the Federation possessed. But even they couldn't stop the Vorlons from destroying their world. But what he was seeing conflicted with what his mind remembered. The Federation had thousands of ships. Why hadn't they used all of those vessels to save their world and more importantly, now that Earth was destroyed, what would these Humans and their allies do?

_**USS Mayer-Scott**_

Jeffery Sinclair's body was in a cold sweat, strained trying to force his mind to wake up. The scenes being played within his mind was almost too much. The Federation Earth, so much like his own yet so different, had been destroyed by the beings called the Vorlons and that event had caused some thing to be broken. He had no idea of what it was that had been severed but it felt of supreme importance. _'It was only a dream' _he whimpered, but although his mind knew it was a dream it would not allow him to awaken. Frustrated, he resigned himself and he began to relax, allowing the dream to continue to its completion without resistance.

_**USS-Enterprise:**_

Admiral James T. Kirk tossed and turned as he dreamed a nightmare. The feelings of dread weren't due to the grisly events playing inside his mind. No, it was the direction he felt his 'dream' self was headed.

_**Dream state-USS Enterprise: **_

Captain's log, supplemental: _It's been three weeks since the loss of Earth and not just my home. Vulcan was attacked by these beings known as the Vorlons. As with Earth there was little to nothing left when they finished. The combined fleets of Starfleet and the Empire were finally able to stop them from hitting Andoria with their planet killer. Thirty percent of our combined forces were destroyed before we managed to force them to retreat back to the anomaly. Most effective were the Klingon vessels with their ability to cloak, which confused the enemy. We estimate that over sixty percent of their invading forces were either destroyed or damage including their planet killer. We are unsure however how many more vessels they have, or if and when we will be attacked once more. Andoria was saved for now but if nothing else these aliens are persistent and there is little doubt that they will return to complete what they've started. The Federation has no intentions of allowing what happened to Earth and Vulcan be repeated anywhere else. There has been an unprecedented alliance formed between the Klingons and the Federation and both governments have started fleets of ships which will take the war to those who have attacked us. The _Enterprise_ is being repaired and I have been instructed to head to Memory Alpha. There are things there may be useful in the coming war. The repercussions have shaken the very core of the Federation and I am uncertain where we're headed in the future being. The Federation was created so that different societies could come together in mutual trade and defense and we Starfleet have failed. It is become my opinion that as laudable as it was we may have focused too much on exploration and not enough on defense. There weren't enough ships available when needed for the defense of the core worlds; there wasn't enough time to put men and ships on the line and we paid for that with the loss of life across the entire Sol and Vulcan systems. We are responsible for this. We couldn't save those we loved and were responsible for protecting. All we can do is to avenge their deaths and make sure that nothing like this happens again. _

Personal log, Supplemental: _I feel- empty. Carol and David are dead, killed by Sheppard. That bastard killed my son. The genesis project was their project. Starfleet had reported the Regulus station destroyed by Klingon disruptor fire. But genesis was in possession of Sheppard. I discovered during the battle that there was at least one Klingon Bird of prey working with his now destroyed squadron. He tried to pin it on the Klingons and would have succeeded if it hadn't been for the war. The bastard killed Carol and my son._

_I stayed away, as I promised. I didn't see him as he took his first steps or looked at the stars for the first time. I didn't see him as he grew up. Carol wanted it that way and she wanted him to be in her world not mine, traveling throughout the galaxy always wanting to see what was behind that next star. I kept my promise. They're gone, killed by that bastard over a science experiment. I didn't know that his hatred would last this long. Should have known he'd blame Carol for his own weaknesses. He hated us both and he killed my son. Earth and Vulcan are gone. It's war and in some corner of my mind there's a part of me no matter how despicable can accept that and that's when I realized it. I've lost two children, didn't get a chance to hold either one of them in my arms. There's a void in my heart now, and I can feel it slowly being filled with a darkness that I find myself embracing. I've failed in my responsibilities to the Federation and I've failed to protect my son and his mother. I feel –old and empty. If - only I could forget. _

_But I won't. _

_**Memory Alpha:**_

Fifty members of Starfleet sat next to an equal number of Klingon commanders in an unprecedented meeting with the newly appointed Federation President and the Chancellor of the Klingon Empire. War had been officially declared and this historic gathering would mark the beginning of a war that would change the face of the galaxy.

"A most formidable weapon indeed," General Chang said. Seated next to him were several Klingon generals all of them experiencing feelings that raged between horror and undisguised envy at the project that lay before them. "Only Humans would devise something that would make them gods and then delude themselves that they created it for good."

"There is a danger, yes," Admiral Kirk said, "creating and destruction in our hands. The question is do we use it? Are we ready to use such power wisely?"

"If will destroy your enemies, yes!" Chang challenged. His supporters were not as enthusiastic as he and he noticed it. His next words reflected their mood. "These Vorlons and their Minbari servants, for a lack of a better term, attacked and destroyed your home world. They destroyed every settlement in the system. Vulcan is gone. They tried to destroy Andoria. They know we are your allies, which means we are their enemies. This isn't a time for weak Human platitudes. We must destroy them now; take the war to them before they come back. Qo'nos will not stand by and be slaughtered like your Federation worlds now when we have this power to use against them."

"Using Genesis is the proper measured response against the Vorlon Empire," Starfleet Admiral Collauge answered flatly. The short red-faced Human had a frown on his face that would have done any Klingon proud. "None of us here can't afford to believe that they won't come back and finish the job they began. Thanks to your interrogation 'methods'," and he almost hissed the word as he glared at the Klingons, "with the Minbari we have some idea of where to find them. If they think that we're going to cower and hide while they destroy entire worlds then they're fools. They have their planet killers and we have ours. Such sciences should never be used frivolously, but there are times when circumstances demands that we take drastic action."

"Then let's be clear about this," Kirk stated. "The genesis device is a weapon of mass destruction at exists on a scale that we've never conceived of. If we use this then let's not play the morality game. Once this is used there is no going back. We will be consigning billions to their deaths because we 'choose' to do this." He was quiet for a moment. "I have my reservations but this war will have to end now before billions more die. If we must destroy a world to keep dozens of others from meeting the same fate then we should. There is no morality in what we're talking about, only survival. We willingly commit genocide to protect ourselves and accept the consequences or we don't do it at all."

"Agreed," Chancellor Gorkon said. "There is no morality here. There is only the animal, the primal need to survive in us all. It pervades us, makes killing enjoyable. But you are right, Admiral Kirk. This must be thought through carefully and if we walk this path them we will continue until we are done. We can not afford to leave such a dangerous enemy merely wounded. To prevent genocide we must commit genocide. I do not say this lightly. The animals within us all want us to destroy. We enjoy the animal but we will not let it rule us.

As you have argued, this weapon 'is' dangerous. We shall not allow the Romulans to get their hands on such a device. We Klingons understand them better than you. We fight because we love glories of battle. The Romulans would simply use genesis on all of our worlds, so I propose this. We will allow the Federation our most advanced cloaking device technology if you will destroy all of the genesis devices created after we are secure. There will be a limited number of these devices made to be used used. The ones not used will be destroyed. We're not ready for such power and there are others that would destroy us all in order to obtain such power. The knowledge of Genesis must be secured. The Klingon empire will have the protection of the Klingon Empire whenever needed."

The interim-President of the Federation agreed. "Thank you for your offer and the pledge of support," he responded. "We have a few cloaking systems of our own that you may be interested in. Gentlebeings, it's time to make plans. They kicked our collective butts this time. Before we encounter them again, we need to even the odds."

_**Centauri Prime: real time**_

Trapped within his fevered dream, Emperor Turhan screamed, muttering in his sleep about what never was. However it was Lady Morella, his wife that suffered the most, because for all of those who dreamed, she was the only one experiencing it while awake who understood the events for what they were. She also knew that she was being allowed to listen in on this 'not vision' her husband was forced to endure. The nightmare had distressed her as well because it triggered her precognitive abilities. She witnessed what was going to happen and fully understood the consequences of such actions would bring to the known worlds of another reality, another universe. She didn't know how she knew but she did. She was a witness to history gone mad. Entire races were about to die because of the death of one Minbari leader. She tried to shunt the images away, but it was useless as she too was dragged along.

Dreams were things of fragments, thoughts of the subconscious as the mind relaxed or in many cases worked on problems left over from the days' challenges. Occasionally they were fantasies or sometimes the stuff of nightmares. None of those definitions applied to the images she was forced to observe. What she saw could only be comparable to a video lecture. She wanted to turn away, wanted to flee the images assaulting here, but she couldn't, something wouldn't let her. Resigned, she began writing down those things that her mind was witness to.

***

Six months after the meeting, the Klingon warships and a few Federation ships, using a stealth system she couldn't even imagine had carefully traversed the anomaly, bypassing two Vorlon cruisers that had failed to detect them. Yes, apparently she saw that the Vorlons had noticed something but were unable to confirm what they saw and since they were Vorlons they made a horrible arrogant mistake that they couldn't be mislead by something as trivial as a young race's vessel. The cloaked recons scouted the area, eventually finding and mapping in detail the Minbari and surrounding territories without being detected.

Five years after that, close to eight hundred of ships entered the anomaly undetected by the Vorlons who had left a probe in the area. The probes detected unusual energy emissions but not the ships themselves. By then the horrible war between the Humans of her universe and the Minbari had been over for over three years. The Minbari had not exterminated the Humans as everyone had expected them to for some reason and there was an ending to hostilities. None of the governments had known why the Minbari had surrendered at the battle of the line and many of the theories had never been proven satisfactorily, so Lady Morella was stunned, almost dropping her writing instrument when the truth was revealed to her.

Could that be true? She was gripped with terror. If it were true then the Minbari here in 'her' real life would be blended with Humanity and that meant that they were attempting to extinguish a part of their own people. It was small wonder as to why they had kept such a thing secret! She could never tell a soul least her life and anyone who she would tell might be forfeit. The Minbari would never dare allow that knowledge to get out. The repercussions would be catastrophic for the Centauri if the Minbari somehow survived the Federation onslaught that was at their door. But she didn't have time to dwell on such matter now, the dream was continuing.

With so many shocks compiling themselves on her every moment, the female Centauri psychic barely gave that a passing thought. Her entire focus was on something else. Because of her gifts, she was one of the few in here in the known territories that 'knew' of the genesis device. She '_knew'_ of Spock and his unique heritage before the ISN broadcast on _Becerra Alpha One_. She '_knew'_ of the power of the Federation and what they were capable of and that had frightened her for weeks after that revelation. But she also believed that the Humans and their companions were a responsible people. In this dream however, her nightmares were being revealed.

The Vorlons were power and in many ways believed they were gods, not all of them of course, but enough. Nothing could hurt them or so they believed. Even in real life they felt safe in their knowledge and power. nevertheless they had a weakness that they either ignored, somehow missed, or had maybe forgotten. These beings were millions of years old, First Ones as they were called on the ISN broadcasts. Their knowledge was unparalleled and they strode the galaxy as giants. However that was the point and the questions that invaded her thoughts now on so many levels that had given her a headache. If they were so advanced, then why were they so limited in their technology? Had they forgotten more than they had learned? How could the young races possibly hurt them?

Yet, she was witness.

All of the local races knew that over the centuries the Vorlon territories had been breached several times by the young races and every time those ships had been destroyed immediately or never heard from again There were several reasons why this happened that Morella could see why this happened.

First, Vorlon normal space and hyperspace sectors were constantly under surveillance and as such no ship could remain undetected. The second reason was those exploration vessels were simply not strong enough or numerous enough withstand destruction. And thirdly, all races that had traversed their territory in the past thousand years, or so had been modified either by the Vorlons or Shadows and those gene modifications were like beacons to any probe or Vorlon ship in the area.

Days before the Minbari strike, two Vorlon listening posts were destroyed and the Vorlons had no idea what had happened to them. Several scout vessels were dispatched to find out what happened. There was nothing left of the mushroom-shaped structures or the asteroid themselves however the weapon's signatures were quickly identified. The Centauri female could feel the shock permeate throughout the entire Vorlon consciousness.

The Vorlon consciousness was extremely angered and embarrassed by the twin attacks. If the arrogant, young ones had destroyed the listening posts, and all evidence pointed in that direction, then at meant that they were in need of another far more effective lesson, one that they'd not survive. They reasoned correctly that after all of this time, somehow the young ones were attempting some sort of retaliatory strike against them. These arrogant pebbles had no respect for their elders and apparently had not learned their lesson either, and that was something that needed correction. It would have been amusing if these same young ones hadn't killed more Vorlons in the last five years than had died in the last thousand years. Instead it made them deeply angry and the leadership immediately planned to return and remove those responsible as well as everyone in the sector once and for all.

The consciousness determined that the enemy vessels in the area that needed to be taught that lesson first. The problem was finding them. The untamed were not like the young ones under their control. They hadn't been modified by the Vorlons and as such were difficult to read or even detected. Their ships didn't use hyperspace as a means of travel, another problem that the Vorlons and their adversaries had corrected for tens of thousands of years ago when the great argument first began. They also had developed a form of invisibility that was far superior to anything the Minbari or even they had developed. Morella watched entranced as the Vorlons called out their forces. At the edge of their territory, a skirmish broke out. Several smaller cruisers were destroyed, along with an equal number of the enemy ships. That shocked the Vorlons. They'd won the skirmish but the battle had been far too equal in their eyes. Apparently the pebbles had developed new armor and had done so quickly, which was another irritation to the Vorlons. Those pebbles advanced far too quickly which served only to increase the need to remove them as quickly as possible. Almost too late they realized that skirmish had been a feint. The Kosh clanship poured though the data of the probes stationed at the anomaly and discovered the meaning of the energy patterns recorded by those probes. Close to a thousand ships had passed by and they had never even noticed. Once they knew what to look for and how to track it, the entire Vorlon forces were mobilized.

The Ventox colony world, established for tens of thousands of years ceased to exist inside of an hour. The land-based defense forces, never used, were overwhelmed. The few Vorlon ships patrolling the colony were vastly outnumbered and wiped out by a combination of heavy photonic and tri-cobalt torpedoes. Contrary to established belief, Morella saw that the colony world did have some sort of protective shielding not unlike the alpha quadrant forces. However it did little good against the bombardment that followed. The Federationists and their allies burned the planet almost a third of the way to the core before they faded from view. They had used several different weapons including their so-called phaser weapons and antimatter missiles. There were other things, including some sort of heavy beam weaponry that made huge swaths everywhere it touched. Ancient breeding waters boiled, vaporized or were broken into its base components. Mushroom-shaped cities disappeared either in bright flashes of light from photon torpedoes, or because of those beams that either turned them into vapor, or phasered them out of existence. The death screams of everything in the Ventox system galvanized the Vorlons in a way that nothing else ever had since the opening of the gate a million years (from their point of view) earlier.

She belatedly realized that they understand for the first time that this isn't some pitiful, vengeful skirmish, but a real war. Their ships throughout known space rush to return to Vorlon Prime. Plans are hastily made and planet killers are seeded. The pebbles hadn't learned their lesson and in fact had gone out of their way not to learn the lesson taught to them by their elders. Only young ones touched by darkness would dare attack them and because they weren't processed they didn't respect their elders. The Federation, all of its allies and anything touched by them are to be wiped out, completely exterminated. The Vorlons were more angry than frightened by the destruction of Ventox and angry Vorlons were a vengeful sight to behold as with one consciousness they prepared for war against the young ones and any one touched by their darkness.

Morella was suddenly afraid for her life. She'd been given too much information. This was happening in a vision or maybe not a vision but something else. She wasn't absolutely sure what it was but she knew there were outside forces at work. And she knew that if she ever encountered a Vorlon, then it would be able to sense what she would try her best to hide. The secrets she now carried would guarantee her death and any of those she was in contact with. This dream state, this history that never was…

…That was it! It DID exist in another alternate reality, another universe as it were. It was a warning. So profound was this revelation that she almost forgot what she was viewing.

The images were moving faster now. The Vorlons were protecting their home world from their invisible tormentors. The beings of light – was that what they were or was it as they wish to appear as? – had planned to expand and destroy the Federation ships and their allies. The ships were invisible but they emitted plasma and that could be tracked. Hundreds of tracks were identified heading directly towards Vorlon Prime and hundreds of times the speed of light. The Vorlons determined to return through the anomaly, wipe them out, finishing what they had begun in the first place. Vorlon blood was on Human and allied pebbles hands and repayment would be a thousand fold.

At the edge of the home system the battle started. Four thousand semi-sentient Vorlon vessels of every kind were in the system when the reckless Human Admiral James T. Kirk and blood thirsty Klingon General Chang led the attack with their paltry eight hundred ships. Paltry they were but the Vorlons respected them by trying to make sure that they got no where near them. Vorlon energy beams started dissecting space just as the de-cloaking incredibly fast-moving ships returned fire using phaser, disruptor, photon and tri-cobalt torpedoes. Allied shields had been improved over the last five years but Morella cringed as the powerful Vorlon beams still sliced through and destroyed the smaller ships with only two to three direct strikes. Still she knew that her own Centauri forces would have been decimated by the first strikes.

But the Vorlons were suffering losses at a horrendous rate contrary to everything she knew about the First One power and advancement. The tri-cobalt explosives were all but useless when used against shielded ships explosives. With yields of fifteen thousand teracochranes each blew huge holes in the heavily armored but unshielded organic vessels. The weapons were also created several subspace rifts in the surrounding area, rifts that increased with each explosion. Hyperspace generators rapidly became useless now as the rifts started expanding. The Vorlons weren't used to the type hit and run tactics the Federation and the Klingons excelled in hurting them more than once. They considered their own organically –based ships among the fast-moving in space but the enemy ships' speed and control made their ships look slow in comparison and they were taking full advantage of it. There were several attacks where the Federation ships hit the larger Vorlon warships at faster than light speed with their missiles. They were devastatingly effective. She noted that the most effective, most dangerous Federation ships were the three nacelle cruisers. Their beam weapons were different. She gasped as something told her that they were anti-proton based beams. Whatever they touched ceased to exist. Huge Vorlon dreadnoughts were targeted and obliterated. The attacks destroyed a huge number of the heavy hitters but the price had been appalling with most of the heavy attack cruisers both Klingon and Federation being destroyed by the counter fire intercepting them from all sides.

Tactically, Vorlon armadas faced their enemies using superior firepower to destroy their enemies, a tactic successfully used for tens of thousands of years. One-on-one, even the massive three kilometer Shadow warships were no match for a Vorlon war cruiser in a straight fight, neither were the Alliance vessels even with upgrades. With nearly two hundred ships destroyed outright and at least that number damaged beyond the ability to fight back the spirit of the young ones was broken and they began backing off from their attacks. Reassured and seeking the blood of the enemy, the First Ones surged forward. The Federation retreated using their faster than light drives to flee.

Morella had expected something like this. The Vorlons were simply too powerful. However, she suddenly froze, her eyes going wide. Three high-speed missiles had been fired at the Vorlon pursuit ships from a fleeing starship and she knew. She knew.

The Vorlons knew as well, the energy pattern identified by sensors being unmistakable.

The ships closest to rapidly closing projectiles were trying desperately to vector out of the way and generate jump points. Other ships tried to target the missiles before they could explode. Hundreds of ships were trying to generate jump points, each trying to escape what the sensors had told them the weapons were. The living ships were shrieking at their pilots as jump points collapsed due to the hyper and subspace disruptions done by the tri-cobalt weapons. One of the missiles was intercepted. Then the entire consciousness screamed in abject terror as the two surviving proto-matter constructs designed as fleet destroyers detonated. Lady Morella was not impressed by the initial explosion. She had expected something a lot bigger.

The genesis-based, proto-matter construct's visual detonation was insignificant, but the effect wasn't. Even before the explosion reached its brightest flare, every ship in the area simply disappeared. One instant they was there and the next they was gone. An invisible subspace wave had struck them moving faster than she believed possible. Indeed the subspace wave was moving hundreds of times the speed of light. Dozens, then scores, then hundreds, and then thousands of Vorlon ships of every configuration ceased to exist as the wave struck them. The terrified screaming went silent in a matter of moments.

The outer planets, ten in all, and the colonies, and any matter in the area was converted turned into atomic particles. Where huge gaseous worlds had been; now there was only empty space. Absolutely nothing was left as the wave dissipated, its own energy spent. Two minutes later less than one hundred fifty ships were left from a total of almost four thousand. Capital Vorlon forces in the outer system had been gutted.

The survivors couldn't believe it or rather they did but couldn't believe that it had actually happened to them. The young ones had possessed the forbidden knowledge. They were too young to had had invented it themselves, therefore someone must have given it to them! The Shadows were of course the first suspects, but it was quickly discounted. Not even they were insane enough to give such power to these infantile creatures, but the question still remained. The home world was panicked now. They understood all to well that this battle was over. The High command had ordered the destruction of the pebble worlds and now those pebbles insisted in taking some sort of petty revenge and had the power to do so. Apparently they hadn't understood the lesson given them was for their own benefit.

Orders were given to those still coming home to stay away. Messages were sent as to what happened and what was expected to happen. The survival of their species depended on the survivors coming together and rebuilding somewhere new, away from these pebbles until they were strong once more. There was nothing left but revenge for the fallen. As for the High command, if there was any sorrow from the Koshs and the Keheshs, it was because the pebbles were able to strike back with such brutal and unexpected efficiency. Order had to be maintained. That was the opinion of the leadership.

The majority of the other Vorlons didn't care much about order at the moment. Thousands of ships of every description were being made ready to escape from what everyone assumed was another attack coming. No Vorlon could remember a time like this where complete panic reigned across the world.

***

The upgraded, heavily armored _Exeter_ exited subspace long enough to fire one enhanced torpedo at Vorlon Prime, before jumping back into maximum warp. The attack was sudden and precise. The Vorlon vessels to their credit tried to intercept the pulsating missile but with it traveling at light speed nothing came close. The missile entered the atmosphere and a second later exploded on one of the center masses. The Second Federation ship, _Enterprise_, also exited from warp and fired a torpedo. However its target was not the Vorlon Home world, but the system's central star.

The torpedo that struck Vorlon Prime detonating on the planetary shields was different from the one that had gutted the fleet. However the shield didn't stop the spreading of the genesis effect around the globe in a matter of seconds, the effects penetrating the protective shield with ease. The programming of this device was simple, designed to split the planet's oceans into its atomic bases of hydrogen and oxygen and to convert all organic matter into its base components leaving a barren rock in it place. Although partially energy-based, the Vorlon species was still tied to the flesh and that doomed them all. Every living creature, every male, female and child entity on the planet ceased to exist. All life on the Vorlon home world was extinguished while the surviving Vorlons in their ships looked on helplessly. The wave continued to spread until it reached the three moons in orbit around the now dead planet.

Lady Morella mourned for the loss of the Vorlon people, however in a small part of her mind she wasn't as outraged as she should have been given the perspective that she'd been witnessed to. Her attention shifted to the lone starship that had just launched the second torpedo. That one, again different from the others was physically larger. The proto-matter core of this weapon was encased by three kilograms of pure antimatter detonated three million miles from the star combining with normal matter. The tree states of matter joined and the effect was instantaneous. The star's color went from deep yellow to blue expanding seconds later and then exploded in a rainbow of color as the genesis wave used its energy to fuel its effect. Moments later, the sun's energy was converted into raw power giving the wave power reach its full potential and spreading through both normal and subspace while turning everything it touched into the simplest element hydrogen. The wave expanded quickly engulfing the remaining Vorlon ships that were trying to flee. It continued, destroying every rock, every remaining planet, every asteroid, every piece of stellar debris everything in the system and the wave continued spreading at thousands of times of the speed of light. The Ventox star system died ten hours later as did the DS158 star system. The destructive energy eventually encompassed thirteen light years in all directions.

The Vorlon Empire had been gutted. The Dorac star system close to Centauri territory was reduced to nothingness before the wave completely dissipated. Lady Morella suppressed the tears. There would be a price to be paid for such actions. The surviving Vorlons would never forget. In what direction this would lead for the Federation and her people as well, she'd never know. The Federation had become a destroyer of worlds and although in her universe he would known as the 'Warlord Kirk' she would forever see Admiral James T. Kirk as 'the Starkiller'.

There was more.

A week or more had passed since the destruction of the Vorlon home world and the surrounding systems, many of which had once thriving Vorlon colonies almost as huge as their home world. Although allies in some form, the Minbari had never been allowed into Vorlon territories, but the Minbari knew that something was amiss. The more sensitive ones, the telepaths had felt a unified scream that had been quickly snuffed out like a candle.

The Minbari telepaths hadn't known that they created by Vorlon manipulation and were sensitized to the Vorlon consciousness being able to hear the psychic death scream of so many ancient entities. What the community did know was that something was horribly wrong. So great had been the disturbance that the Grey Council onboard the _Valen'tha_ situated in hyperspace had been notified. Satai Delenn was worried enough to suggest that an expedition be sent to the edge of Vorlon space. That thought had hardly been formalized when she felt the call. It was so strong, stronger than at any time ever before. Almost stumbling she entered the private quarters of Dukhat. She entered the darkened room. Lady Morella strained to see and she gasped. Vorlons, two of them were huddling next to the wall. Even through their encounter suits both creatures looked agitated and more than a bit frightened.

"Did you call for me?" Delenn had asked respectfully.

She could feel the desperation emanating from the creature. "The pebbles have shattered the mountain." One of the Vorlons faced her. "The avalanche rains upon the ground. Run. Now."

The command to run was so forceful that she was slammed into the bulkhead. Blood ran from her nose as she stumbled out of the room fleeing to the bridge. Nearly falling to the deck, others of her caste saw her and rushed to her aid. "We must leave, now!"

Confused but trained to obey, the others rushed to relay the order.

***

Only a few of the Federation warships warped into the home system of the Minbari. The ships were larger, more intimidating than the ones shown on ISN at _Alpha Becerra One_. They were heavier armored and no doubt carried more powerful weapons. Many of them looked like the _USS Excelsior_ commanded by Captain Sulu but with more armor. That made her grimace as the Minbari had placed a bounty almost as large for that ship as they had on the warlord and the pirate. No one was trying to collect it now of course as it was a suicide venture, however everyone knew what the three Federation ships looked like and here none of them quite matched 'real life'.

She saw the first attack against the home world of the Minbari. Two dozen ships comprised of both Federation and Klingon forces, using their stealth systems appeared from nowhere and butchered the unprepared forces protecting Minbar. Not one ship, not one crew member was spared. Jump points were opened and dozens of the missiles both tri-cobalt and antimatter based were fired into it exploding seconds after they entered. Any ships in local hyperspace were buffeted and destroyed by the immense turbulence created by the multiple high-yield explosions. The _Valen'tha_ and its escorts, just beginning to move out were caught in the massive concussion wave and torn apart. Internal explosions and the loss of containment of the artificial singularity finished what were left of the ships. There were no survivors.

The starships systematically destroyed all of the orbital habitats, communications relay systems, and any and all civilian vessels in the system. Long before that she could see the state of absolute panic on the home world just as intense as it had been on the world she named Vorlon Prime. (In truth, the world of the ancient ones was so old that only the Vorlons knew its real name anymore but she being a mere mortal had to name it something.). The jump gate had been destroyed by photon torpedoes and phaser bombardment. Any Minbari ship attempting to respond to the attacks were destroyed as soon as they exited jump space. Some of the allies' ships fired missiles directly into the open vortexes. She had no idea what effect they would have on hyperspace but she knew that the Federation ships had the ability to track ships in jump space and she also knew what the effect of weapons fire in hyperspace would do. Any ship caught in the explosion's wake would be doomed just as the others had been.

Most of the Minbari had no idea why they were being attacked or by whom. Only when they saw the face of a Human speaking to them from orbit on what remained of their communications network did they understand the magnitude of the danger that they faced. A few of the warriors understood what was about to happen and why. The one called the Star Killer Kirk, or as they called him in her world, the Human 'Warlord Kirk', calmly explained who he was and that they, the Minbari, had unjustly attacked his world pulling them into a war they had nothing to do with. He calmly, almost devoid of feelings, explained that his world was destroyed and another had died as a result of this same war that had pulled the Vorlons into the conflict. He explained that the Vorlon home world had been destroyed with all inhabitants. He explained that there had to be a balance as it was the only thing that ensured the survival of the others. He also explained that the use of planet killers were not the exclusive domain of the so-called First Ones. He finally told them that Minbar's people would not feel that much. Lastly he said he would give them a few moments to prepare.

It was the most frightening speech she'd ever heard.

The first barrage of antimatter-based weapons to hit the planet's atmosphere ripped three quarters of the atmosphere from the planet as they were designed to do. The second barrage completed the task. The end took less than ten minutes to turn that beautiful world into a barren waste land full of the dead and those few left alive who were dying. That action was repeated in several star systems located in Minbari territories by other Federation and Klingon vessels at the same time. Ninety-six percent of the Minbari population everywhere ceased to exist within an hour. Space docks, habitats, space stations, and ship storage facilities were destroyed. They left nothing intact.

Lady Morella cried as she felt the life forces being ripped from so many bodies. This was something new, and she silently begged whatever power that forced her to be a witness would take it from her. Stunningly, she perceived a response from a presence something so alien that she initially recoiled from its presence but it was only there for a second and then it was gone.

"Remember," it had said not unkindly.

Shocked she continued to write even though she was unaware she was doing so.

Entranced now, she saw the surviving Minbari warrior caste clanships immediately, and understandably assumed that Humans of Earth were somehow were responsible for such a treacherous atrocity. Few knew of the details about the so-called Earther colony that had broken the Star Riders clan killing Dalek, one of their great leaders. A week later, forty of their ships entered Earth space and slaughtered nearly a three billion inhabitants before they could be stopped by several Andorian stalkers and Klingon starships in the area. Other world governments, appalled at what the Minbari had done offered immediate assistance before Earth could have a chance to close in upon itself. But as for the reason for the Minbari attack, no one on Earth had had a clue as to why until much later. With the treaty violated in such a brutal manner, Alliance Humans and the surviving Minbari would be locked in a blood feud that would bring both populations to the brink of extinction.

There was some Federation assistance. When it came to the Federation at first, there was elation about them, something that quickly turned into suspicion. There had been rumors circulating around Earth Alliance years ago about a group of Humans and aliens calling itself 'the Federation' that had contacted the Antares Colony. The reports from the survivors had been filed and kept from the general public as they were never able to be confirmed. President Levy and Earth Alliance were surprised by the fact that this Federation did exist and was comprised of Humans and aliens working together but were naturally more than skeptical of the facts concerning the Minbari and the unknown species called the Vorlons. Much later, the other races discovered that seven stars located in Vorlon space and the missing star near Centauri territory had disappeared. The Federation aliens, an enigma to all of the locals, had told them of the destruction but no one had believed until Minbar was confirmed barren of all life. By proxy Earth Alliance suddenly found their status among the other races significantly upgraded – and greatly feared. Lady Morella knew she wouldn't be allowed to know how all of this would turn out in the future.

However she did see a glimpse of what happened to the other First Ones. When the Shadows awakened from their slumber, they were at first confused and then angry, and after that they became extremely cautious. Something unimaginable had happened. There were chaos-bringers at work, not under their control. They searched through the rubble, gleaned the truth and decided to stay as far away from the Federation as possible despite anguished entreaties from their philosophical/mortal enemies, the surviving Vorlons. The Shadows believed the untamed ones to be order wrapped in chaos, the best of both worlds and it would be interesting to see how they progressed with no interference from them. It was decided that the Federation had adequately proven the Shadow points of view; most of them anyway and now was not the time to push young ones who could push back so dangerously effectively. Maybe in the future they might change their minds…

…Or maybe not…

_**Centauri Prime:**_

Emperor Turhan moaned and lifted his head looking into the eyes of a weeping Morella. He had a nightmare. He was sure of it but like most dreams, it was fading like the last drops of rainwater flowing down the drain. Try as he might he couldn't grasp and hold on. But from the look of his wife she had seen what he couldn't remember. "It was nothing, my wife," he said trying to comfort her.

She smiled through her tears. "Yes my Emperor, nothing at all."

_**Organia:**_

The blond Metron opened his eyes lowly, his energy spent. "All that we have asked for has been done. Thank you."

In response, the Melkotians blinked slightly in response. Their eyes returned to the normal glow characteristic of their species. "We did not know," one of them answered. We were aware of what happened in the past but they killed without cause."

"And the Federation responded as we would have," the blond finished. "It was finished in the most efficient way available to them."

"But the Humans killed," the Melkotian argued.

"Didn't they have a right to respond to the threat?" asked the brunette Metron. He raised his hand. "I understand this is not time for our eternal argument. We are not here to approve or disapprove of what the Vorlons did or how the Federation responded. As you have seen, in that universe the Vorlons attacked protecting their precious circle and were equally attacked in response. In many of the other universes we observed the Federation did not use their primitive proto-matter devices against the Vorlons and the Vorlons prevailed and destroyed them while our counterparts did nothing. They have destroyed countless races in other time lines and in only a few have they chosen not to destroy the younger races under their care."

"You've said that before," Ayelborne stated. "We are all aware of this. The Organian counsel is not interested in what has happened in other universes. We are interested in what is happening here in this universe. This war has the potential to spread into the Alpha quadrant and that is something we will not tolerate. We've stopped the Klingons and the Federation from going to war once."

"But you can't do it again," the blond Metron countered. "The Time war has disrupted your ability to maintain control. And you know what is coming."

"Yes," Ayelborne answered. "It stresses us to even contemplate such a thing."

"You know they will be responsible for protecting countless worlds or they will all fall. The Preserves are aware of this and have allowed some of their ships to use the trans-way and even chose not to prevent ships from two different universes to communicate with each other." There was silence from all of those gathered. He continued: "The Federation is young, semi-civilized and capable of doing great evil. Or," he added, "they will become part of the great good. That is the reason why we have agreed to allow them to see into that other reality. The one known as James T. Kirk is a fulcrum, as is Sheridan, Sinclair, Delenn and G'Kar. But we have all had personal experienced with the Human called James Kirk and we have seen him and have examined him. For a semi-savage, militaristic, chaos bringer, he has his good points. He represents Humanity and the Federation at its best and worse at this point in their development and this is why we Metrons have specifically requested this dream statement. This war is coming to a conclusion, but what he does will determine the fate of the Federation, the Alpha quadrant and those in Vorlon contested territory. We have given him the tools. Like the others, he will not consciously remember, but the seed has been planted and it grows even now. Let us hope that he chooses wisely when the time comes."

"Yes, let us hope he chooses wisely," the Melkotian ambassador announced. "The Vorlon High Council has not attacked the Federation only because we stand in their way. If they find an excuse then they will. Their precious circle has been broken and they will seek revenge in time. ."

"They will try and force the Shadows to become involved, "both Metrons said simultaneously. "If they do this then we will go to war."

"We do not believe that the Shadows will interfere," the second Organian intoned. 'They are most satisfied with the treaty. There is no reason for them to lose everything they have gained by going to war."

"Be it known to all that the Collation of Elders will not object if the Vorlons violate the terms of the agreement imposed on them," said a huge humanoid creature made of rocks. Its eyes were made of liquid lava and its voice sounded as if it had due vocal chords. "But at the appointed time, they will violate the treaty. We have foreseen this."

"As have we," Ayelborne stated. "It is inevitable."

"Then the Federation will have to defend themselves."

"They will be ready if Kirk chooses correctly."

"So be it."

_**Shengol Star System**_

_**Federation-Allied battle fleet**_

_**USS Enterprise - Admirals quarters:**_

"_Admiral Kirk, your presence is requested on the bridge."_

"Thank you, Lieutenant," he moaned stifling a yawn. "Is there a problem?"

"_Sensors have detected a Minbari cruiser in hyperspace headed in our direction."_

"How many?"

"_Just one. It's transmitting tight beam tachyon signals. They want to talk. "_

Sitting up now, he took a moment to stretch and glance at the clock. Straining, he put on his glasses. "A whole six hours this time," he muttered.

"_Admiral?"_

"Place the fleet on condition yellow. Keep me informed. I'll be there shortly. Have some coffee ready and none of that synthetic stuff this time."

"_Yes, Sir."_

It was time to get up. The last time the Minbari came calling they tried to attack the fleet, or rather those Ashen-Minbari did. They failed and the resulting battle had turned hyperspace into a raging storm stretching several light years in every direction. _'Getting old' _he thought. He used to jump right up. _'Not as much anymore_' he mused. His procrastination stage over, he got up quickly and dressed. It was strange that the Minbari would be sending a single ship towards the taskforce, braving hyperspace in the condition that it was in was either the height of foolishness or desperation. He suspected the latter.

Showered and freshly clothed, he opened the door to his quarters and stopped or a second before continuing. Something tickled the back of his mind. He suspected the Minbari ship was coming to offer terms while they still could. It was the most logical thing especially braving hyperspace in the condition that it was in just to get here. General Order twenty-four was still in effect and he wasn't about to change that. There was a small part of him that almost wished that they wouldn't surrender. They were savages, willing to destroy an entire species in order to avenge one being. They already killed tens of millions. Maybe the score should be evened, a balance maintained. Immediately those thoughts disturbed him. He shook his head.

It was so easy to kill.

The hard choice was not to do it.

**Fin**

To be concluded in 'A THIN VENEER'


End file.
